Thunderer
by Nataku's Wrath
Summary: Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of...THOR! When Orochimaru interrupts the Chunin Exams, Naruto discovers an ancient weapon of incredible heritage and astonishing power. See how he grows into the new God of Thunder! The world will never be the same again! Naruto Thor Crossover. Pairings Undecided. R&R!
1. Chapter 1

_Thunderer_

Chapter I

Sudden Changes in Weather

**Konoha**

**Training Ground #44 a.k.a. "The Forest of Death"**

Naruto panted in exhaustion. He stood with his arms and legs spread apart, braced against the thick tree branch he stood on, blocking Orochimaru's giant snake summon from devouring his teammates: Sasuke and Sakura. His whisker marks were thicker and darker, his canines and fingernails longer and feral sharp—signs of the Nine-Tailed Fox's influence.

"Is that it? That's all the great Orochimaru's got?" taunted Naruto as he fought to keep the snake at bay. "A bunch of cheap tricks and overgrown snakes?"

"Why you little pest!" seethed Orochimaru. "How dare you insult the greatest of the Sannin? I'll have your skin for a rug on my floor! Eat him and keep his bones for a toothpick!"

"You'll have to do a lot better than this guy then," Naruto smirked as he spun around and stabbed the giant snake in the eye with a kunai. The snake let out a cry of pain before returning to the Summon World in a cloud of smoke.

_Weakling serpent, _cursed Orochimaru. _I ought to turn Manda into a wallet for recommending that overgrown hatchling._

Naruto panted from exhaustion. Being blown through the forest, using the Nine Tails' chakra, and holding that huge snake back had taken a lot out of him. But he kept a smile on his face and pointed his kunai at Orochimaru. He took a quick glimpse at his two teammates; both Sasuke and Sakura were still frozen in fear and astonishment. Naruto turned his head slightly towards Sasuke and smiled.

"You're not hurt, are you scaredy-cat?"

Naruto's taunt cut through Sasuke deeper than any blade ever could and the teen snapped back to reality. Sasuke activated his Sharingan and leveled a glare at Orochimaru.

"Kukuku! Look who joined the party," Orochimaru laughed. "Those eyes…oh those eyes. Kukuku, I can't wait to try them myself."

"What do you mean? You're not an Uchiha. The Uchiha are the elite of all Shinobi. You're just a wretched old pretender," Sasuke sneered in his usual arrogance.

"Foolish boy. You really have no idea what horrors you stand against," Orochimaru sneered.

"Bring it on!" Naruto shouted and stepped in front of Sasuke. Red chakra leaked off Naruto's body, slowing beginning to assume a vague shape around his body like a cloak. "I'll take on you and all your slimy pets, believe it!"

"Snakes aren't slimy," Orochimaru bristled and sank into the tree trunk. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura searched the trees for him, but there was no trace of the traitorous Sannin.

"I guess he took off," Naruto smirked. He spun his kunai around his finger before returning it to his pouch. "I can't believe that guy had you and Sakura shaking in your sandals, Sasuke."

"Shut up Naruto! Sasuke-kun was about to destroy Orochimaru when you had to go and show off with that stupid little snake!" screamed Sakura, the insult to her precious Sasuke snapping her out of her frightened daze.

"What do you mean little? That thing was huge!" Naruto protested. While the two continued to bicker, Sasuke leaned against the tree truck and pressed a bandage on the small, self-inflicted wound on his leg.

_I can't believe I froze like that…his power…it was much worse than Zabuza's. Why did I freeze and Naruto didn't when he was terrified by Zabuza? It must have been that red chakra that was leaking off of Naruto…I need that power!_

Sasuke stepped away from the tree trunk and was about to grab a hold of Naruto when a sinister laughter cut through the air. The three Genin spun around in circles, but couldn't see anything. The laughter stopped and a soft twinkling of musical notes replaced it.

"Three pairs of eyes and not a single pair that can see a thing," Orochimaru said calmly as he appeared in front of Naruto with one hand behind his back. He leaned down and whispered directly into Naruto's ear. "But I can see. Kukuku, I see what you are: jinchūriki!"

Naruto froze in shock and terror. _How does could he know about the fox? _ Inside its cage, the Nine-tailed Fox growled and tried to force more chakra through the seal and into Naruto. Naruto's body shook with the sudden flux of power and red chakra poured off his body, forming a pair of long ears over Naruto's head and the beginnings of a bushy tail.

"Now there will be none of that," Orochimaru smirked and the fingertips of his hidden hand burst into purple flame. "Five Element Seal!"

Orochimaru plunged his burning hand into Naruto's stomach! The blow tore through Naruto's insides, cutting off the Nine-Tail's chakra and disrupting his own chakra's flow. The red chakra vanished into the air and Naruto's features quickly returned to normal as he sank to his knees in front of Orochimaru.

"Pathetic street urchin, I'll teach you to insult your betters!" Orochimaru snarled and kicked Naruto across the chest with all his strength. Naruto shot through the air in an orange-colored blur and smashed into another tree with a bone-crunching thud. He hung there for a second, the force of the impact in perfect equilibrium against gravity, before he began to fall forward into empty space and then the forest floor hundreds of feet below.

"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted and hurled a kunai at his teammate. The kunai barely missed Naruto's shoulder and pinned his jumpsuit to the tree, preventing him from falling to his doom.

"You shouldn't turn your back on your opponent, Sasuke-kun," hissed Orochimaru. In a burst of speed, the snake Sannin unnaturally extended his neck at Sasuke. The neck snaked around Sasuke's body, pinning his arms to his sides, and Orochimaru sank his fangs deep into Sasuke's neck.

Sasuke screamed in pain as Orochimaru's venom spread like fire through his body and then collected back at the bite marks. A trio of black tomoe-shaped marks, eerily similar to Sasuke's Sharingan, appeared just above the bite marks on the back of Sasuke's neck.

"Kukukuku. I've given you a little gift, Sasuke-kun," Orochimaru hissed sweetly into Sasuke's ear. "Use its power and become stronger than your brother ever dreamed on being. This is but the beginning of what I could teach you. Seek me out and I shall bestow even more power onto you than you could imagine. At least, if you survive this."

Orochimaru unwound his neck from Sasuke's body and retracted it to its normal length and shape. "Remember what I said, Sasuke-kun. Survive and seek me out," the Sannin said before crumbling into dust.

"A mud clone!" exclaimed Sakura as she rushed to Sasuke's aid. She caught the boy just before he collapsed and held him in her lap. She looked around, but didn't see a single trace of Orochimaru. "Good riddance," she muttered and returned her attention to Sasuke. She placed a hand on Sasuke's brow and pulled away quickly.

"Gods, you're burning up," Sakura muttered and shifted the boy slightly—doing her best to resist groping her crush and failing in the process—and reached into her pack for her water rations. She opened the canteen and carefully poured a small mouthful into Sasuke's mouth. The boy swallowed the liquid and shuddered in pain.

"I need to get you outta here," Sakura grunted as she struggled to pick up Sasuke's dead weight. She finally managed to hoist Sasuke onto her shoulders in a fireman's carry and, when she stood up to collect her pack, suddenly remembered Naruto. She looked up and saw him hanging from the tree, not moving and unconscious.

_I can't leave Naruto here all alone. If one of the other teams doesn't get him, one of the animals in this damn forest will. But I can barely carry Sasuke-kun; there's no way I can carry them both at the same time!_

While Sakura wrestled with the moral conundrum, a sharp _rip_ tore through the treetops. Sakura's eyes grew wide as Naruto's jumpsuit ripped beneath the kunai holding him against the tree. She held her breath, hoping that the first rip would be it, that the cloth would hold and Naruto would stay right there until she could get Sasuke somewhere safe and come back for him.

The second _rip_ erased the idea from her mind. Naruto's body slumped and swayed against the tree trunk, every movement making the rip larger. Desperate, Sakura reached into her kunai pack and hurled a kunai at Naruto's sleeve, hoping to pin him back in place. But Sasuke's weight ruined her aim and the kunai buried itself in Naruto's shoulder, piercing flesh as well as cloth. Sakura winced at the sight and would have covered her face in shame if Sasuke hadn't let out a painful moan and shuddered violently. It took all of Sakura's feeble strength to keep him on her shoulders.

"Ss-aku-ra…" Sasuke whispered between painful breaths. Sakura blushed deeply, her inner self swelled with pride.

_**Cha! Sasuke-kun needs me; he's calling out to me while he's hurt. When he needs help the most, he's calling out for me! This is it…once I nurse him back to health, he'll take me into his arms and…**_

Another loud _rip_ brought Sakura off cloud nine as the thread holding Naruto in place gave way. He fell off the tree and plummeted toward the forest floor.

"Naruto!" Sakura cried out and ran to the edge of the branch she stood on, but didn't go after him.

_I have to take care of Sasuke-kun, _she thought. _There's nothing I can do for Naruto anymore. Sasuke-kun needs me!_

_**That's right. There was nothing anyone could have done. But Sasuke-kun still has a chance. He's fighting for his life, fighting for love. He needs you to help him while there's still time.**_

_But Naruto…_

_**Cha! Once Sasuke-kun is better, you both can come back and find Naruto's body. You can give him a proper burial, that's what teammates do, right? And afterwards you can console Sasuke-kun and help revive his clan.**_

Sakura blushed and giggled before she shifted Sasuke on her shoulders so her hands were freer to "roam" along his body while she carried him. She cast one last look in the direction Naruto fell before hurrying off to find a place to nurse Sasuke back to health.

-T-

Hitting the first tree knocked Naruto back into consciousness and into a world of pain. He crashed through the forest canopy, smashing through branches and careening off tree trunks. Naruto felt his ribs snap as he folded across a think branch, felt his arm tear against the rough bark of another tree, and finally, after falling for hundreds of feet, plunged headfirst into a deep, circular shaped lake.

The calm surface of the water felt like a cement wall to Naruto. The impact blew all the air out of Naruto's lungs. Naruto choked on icy water and he struggled to reach the surface. His head broke the surface and Naruto coughed on the fresh air. Looking down at his bleeding shoulder, Naruto grit his teeth and ripped out the kunai. He looked at the kunai for a second, gave a confused frown the "S.H." initials inscribed on the handle, and tossed it away before treading water. His broken limbs barely able to keep him afloat, Naruto drifted for only a moment before he tired and slipped back beneath the water.

Naruto struggled to move his wrecked body, but his efforts did little to slow his descent. Naruto tried to concentrate, tried to focus his chakra to his limbs, but only received blistering pain in his stomach for his efforts. Darkness flirted with the edges of his vision as he sank deeper and deeper.

Naruto reached the bottom of the lake and nearly screamed in pain when his arm landed on something incredibly hard. Pain lanced down Naruto's hand and he looked for the offending object, momentarily forgetting about the danger of drowning. Dirt and mud, kicked up by his rough arrival at the lake bottom, settled and Naruto saw a massive hammer lying on the bottom. A wooden handle, wrapped in brown leather with a leather thong at the end, pointed straight up into the water. The hammer itself was a thick rectangle of gray metal that shined despite the lack of sunlight at the lake bottom.

_Reach out,_ a voice whispered.

Naruto shook his head. The lack of oxygen was making him lightheaded. He tried to kick off the bottom, but only drifted a few feet upward before sinking back to the bottom.

_Reach out. Prove your worth._

High above the lake, storm clouds appeared in the sky. Thunder rumbled and streaks of lightning danced between the clouds.

Naruto's vision blurred as his limbs gave up their struggle. He sank to the bottom, chest and belly first, his arms and legs spread lazily at his sides.

_Reach out. Reach out. Reach out._

Naruto looked closer at the hammer. Words shimmered into existence on the side of the hammer, but Naruto was unable to decipher to upside down words. His vision darkened.

Naruto, using his last bit of strength, reached forward and grabbed onto the hammer's handle. The exertion of that simple task caused Naruto's lungs to finally give out and he took in a deep breath of water.

_It's so quiet down here,_ Naruto thought, his brain beginning to shut down from the lack of air. _So calm…no one's fighting down here, no one's chasing me or throwing things at me. Guess it's not the worst place to end up. _A sad smile pulled at the corners of Naruto's lips.

_I'm sorry Old Man; I won't be taking that Hokage hat from you after all. I'm sorry Sasuke, Sakura-chan; I tried my hardest. You'll have to become great ninja without…_

Naruto's eyes closed for the last time as he drowned. His body convulsed and Naruto unknowingly moved the hammer before his body went completely slack.

He never saw the massive lightning bolt crash into the lake.

-T-

Naruto awoke facedown in water. Panicking, he jerked his head up and took a deep breath of foul smelling air. He was sitting on his hands and knees; the water surrounding him was only a few inches deep. Naruto coughed and looked around. He was in a dank and filthy sewer, a narrow and circular tunnel, the water came from many of the rusted out pipes bolted to the walls.

Naruto got to his feet easily; all the injuries and pains from Orochimaru's attacks and his plummet through the forest were gone. Naruto started walking forward, somehow pulled in that direction. The sounds of battle echoed through the sewer tunnel and Naruto walked faster. The sewer tunnel opened into a massive chamber and what filled it stopped Naruto in his tracks.

At one end of the chamber was an enormous cage with thick bars and a piece of paper sealing the doors shut. Purple fire danced across the bars of the cage, the effects of Orochimaru's seal. And inside the cage, the Nine-Tailed Fox raged in all its demonic glory. It smashed its body against the cage, ignoring the purple fires that burned its fur, clawed and bit at the bars, and launched its tails like bushy whips through the gaps in the bars.

Naruto was so awestruck by the size and ferocity of the tailed beast that he didn't notice what the Fox was fighting until he heard a voice ring out: "Wretched beast! Thou are no true demon!"

Naruto turned and saw a man stand strong against the Nine-Tails' rage. Naruto had never seen a man so large. The stranger was well over six feet tall and covered in thick slabs of muscle from head to toe. And he was the strangest dressed man Naruto had ever seen. He wore a black tunic with six metal circles trailing down his chest and abs, a golden belt with strange looking runes on it, dark blue pants, and golden boots that came up to his knees. A thick red cape covered his back and, atop his blonde head, he wore a silver helm with large wings on either side.

The man was wielding the massive hammer Naruto had found at the bottom of the lake, swinging it to block the Fox's tails as if it weighed nothing at all. The man looked over his shoulder and smile down at Naruto.

"I shall be with thee in but a moment," he said in a firm, but warm voice. "First, I shall tame this unruly and overcompensating beast."

The stranger batted away another of the Fox's tails and lifted the hammer over his head. A bolt of lightning appeared out of nowhere and struck the hammer. Naruto stared in amazement as the stranger stood tall, totally unaffected by the shock of lightning, and whirled the glowing hammer over his head.

"For Asgard!" the stranger roared and hurled the hammer at the cage. The hammer passed between the bars and, with a crack of thunder that shook the entire chamber, hit the Fox between the eyes. The Fox let out a high pitched cry and collapsed onto the ground, its tails strewn out haphazardly in all directions.

Naruto's mouth hung open comically as the stranger held out his hand and the hammer lifted into the air and flew back to the stranger on its own. The stranger placed the hammer on his belt and rolled the kinks out of his shoulders, a bright smile on his face.

"Tis been too long since I did battle, even one as short as this is refreshing," the stranger said and he looked down at Naruto. "So you are the one that found my hammer. Apologies, I assumed you would be larger."

It took Naruto a few more seconds to find his voice. "Who…what…huh?"

The stranger laughed; it was a hearty laugh that started deep within his belly and sprang out happily. "Such was the reaction of the last mortals to see my power for the first time, but that was long, long ago. What is your name, little one?"

"N-Naruto."

"Such a strange name," mused the stranger. "But it matters little. I am Thor Odinson, son of Odin and Gaea, God of Thunder and Lord of Asgard."

"Um, ok, Mr. Odinson, where are we?" asked Naruto politely.

"We are in your mind, Naruto. What doth you remember before you arrival in this dismal place?"

"We were fighting that Orochimaru pervert when he hit me in the stomach with some purple fire jutsu and then kicked me into a tree. Next thing I know I'm bouncing off tree branches and tree trucks and then fell into a lake with one of Sakura's kunai in my shoulder. After that…I drowned, didn't I?"

"Nay, you didn't drown," Thor shook his head. "You started to, but when you moved Mjolnir, you summoned the power of the storm and I came hence to this place."

"If this is my mind, how are you in here? Just what is going on here? And what the hell is a Mjolnir?"

"We are in your mind because my spirit is forever bound to Mjolnir and when you moved it, I was awakened. This is Mjolnir," Thor said and raised the hammer to show Naruto. Naruto squinted as the words he first noticed on the hammer back at the bottom of the lake.

"Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of…Thor," Naruto read. "Heh, so that's what that says."

"Indeed. None may wield Mjolnir save those deemed worthy. Only one individual in all the history of the universe has had the strength to hoist Mjolnir from the ground without being worthy, and," Thor chuckled, "you are no Hulk."

"What's a Hulk?"

"An old friend and occasional enemy, but that is a different story. As to your last inquiry, it is a long story, young Naruto, but it is a tale of heroes, worthy of Valhalla," Thor said. "Long, long ago, this world was very different. It was called Midgard and was one of the nine worlds. Odin, the All-Father, ruled over Asgard, world of the gods and I was the strongest warrior amongst them. But I grew too proud and Odin banished me here, to Midgard, so that I may learn temperance and humility. For ten years I lived as a crippled doctor until my father, Odin, restored my godly powers. I remained on Midgard and while here, I fell in love with a beautiful woman named Jane Foster and joined a team of men calling themselves heroes. We became known as The Avengers and were the rock and shield that defended humanity. And for many years, things were good. We battled the forces of evil at all turns and, verily, we saved the world countless times. But when the All-Father fell in battle, I was called home and became the new ruler of Asgard. I inherited my father's Odinforce and grew much more powerful. My reign, however, grew short with the approach of Ragnarok."

"Rag rock?" Naruto repeated.

"Ragnarok, the Twilight of the Gods," Thor explained. "The end of our world, where the enemies of Asgard would unite and all of Asgard would be consumed by fire and darkness. I confronted the Norns and discovered the true meaning of Ragnarok."

"The Norns?"

"The Fates, the weavers of destiny. Ragnarok was a cycle of destruction and rebirth, never granting the Asgardians rest, only pain and death eternal. Only Odin, through the Odinforce, knew of the cycle, but he was powerless to stop it. Alongside my brethren, we defeated the foes of Asgard, but suffered great losses. In the end, I was the only one remaining. All my friends and family had fallen and descended into Hel. Alone and unwilling to see my brethren suffer through more horrors and bloodshed; I broke the Ragnarok cycle, defied the Norns, ended the destruction of Asgard, and granted my family their rest."

"What happened to you?" Naruto asked.

"Breaking the cycle exhausted my godly powers and the wounds I endured throughout Ragnarok had taken their toll on me. However, I suppose I wished to rest more than anything, to see my family again. With my remaining strength, I hurled Mjolnir through the fade between the worlds, across the remains of the Bifrost Bridge, and back to Midgard where I hoped its power may aid my comrades."

"How long ago was that?"

"Many hundreds of your years," Thor answered sadly. "Mjolnir sat and gathered dust. Thousands, nay perhaps millions of souls attempted the feat, but none were deemed worthy to wield Mjolnir. Mjolnir waited, until you arrived this day."

"None of your friends could pick it up?"

"Nay. There was one man that had proven his worth in the past, but, sadly, he had been slain shortly after I departed existence."

"Sorry about your friend."

"Nay, there is no need; he was a great warrior and the halls of Valhalla are brighter with his admittance. And from what I've seen in your memories, Steve would have liked you as well. Alas, I grow sidetracked. Since thee have proven thyself worthy to Mjolnir, you shall become the new Thor!"

"The new…you?"

"Nay, ye can never be me, nor as I could never be you, little Naruto. You will always be Naruto, only with an Asgardian addition. The godly essence that binds me to Mjolnir shall pass unto you. You will become half-Asgardian, half Elder God, as I was. Thou shall gain my unending strength, stamina, speed, reflexes, agility, and durability. Your senses will sharpen, your already impressive healing factor shall become true regeneration; you, Naruto, shall become immortal! Mastery of all forms of combat known to me shall be yours, as well as my armors and Megingjord, the Belt of Strength. Lastly, Mjolnir and all its powers shall be yours to command."

"This is insane," mutter Naruto. "First I'm dying, now you're saying I'm going to live forever and be super strong and…"

"Nay, no creature truly lives forever," interrupted Thor. "I myself am proof of that."

"Ok, but still, this is a lot to take in. What about being a ninja? Can I still use chakra?"

"I fear that I know little of this chakra or of being a ninja," Thor admitted. "The ninja I knew of were cowards and weaklings, and I can see that is not true in your time. I can not foresee what will happen when this conversation ends and you take my powers."

"And what about him?" Naruto asked and pointed to the still unconscious Nine Tails.

"I fear he must remain as well. Perhaps when you are strong enough, there may be a rune spell to remove the beast's taint from you, but, alas, it will be still some time until you are able to perform such a task."

"Hey, yeah, how am I gonna learn how to do all this stuff? Who's gonna train me?"

"Training will be a necessary," Thor replied. "You shall gain my memories and knowledge in the transference, but the powers will grow as you do. Until you fully mature, practical use of your powers will take a long time to master and much hard work will be needed. In time, as you grow, you will learn from my memories and train until you are as powerful as I was."

"Hehe, I was wondering if I was going to wake up all gianty like you," Naruto smiled and rubbed the back of his head.

"Gianty?"

"Yeah, you're the biggest person I've ever seen!" Naruto exclaimed. "Well, except for Choji's dad when he does his expansion jutsu, but you're still the biggest without using a jutsu!"

"Ha ha, such would be an interesting sight to see. I too had a friend capable of changing his size from tiny insect to giant man! Hmm, such a memory serves purpose. Mjolnir is indestructible and eternal; it was child's play for it to survive the eons until your discovery today. My comrades had no such gifts, but, like Mjolnir, perhaps their equipment and technology did. Search the world and you may find the Avengers' legacies," Thor smiled.

"There's other stuff from your time lying around too? All right!"

"Temper exuberance with caution, young Naruto. There were other forces, too numerous for count, in my time that fought not for good, but for the most sinister evil. If Mjolnir survived the ravages of time, there are items of nigh-equal power and beyond that may have as well."

"I'll be careful," Naruto said seriously. "Believe it!"

Thor scratched his head in confusion, but smiled at the young blonde anyway. "Interesting as thou art, time has grown short, my young friend. Are you ready?"

"I…" Naruto paused. His mind raced. _Things will never be the same after this,_ he thought. _I'm never going to be normal, never going to be accepted after this. There's a good chance the villagers might hate me even more after this… but I don't care! I don't understand what exactly is going on, but I gotta get back to help Sasuke and Sakura. And if Thor says I'll become as strong as him someday, than that's good enough to for me. I'll show them all that I'm not a demon and I'll protect Konoha, no matter what!_

"Let's do it."

"You have a stout heart, little one," Thor smiled and placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder. "I know this decision was not an easy one to make, even when it has already been made for you. Always know that all the might and power of Asgard will be with you. Honor Mjolnir and know, no matter what may happen, that you are worthy of the mantle of Thor!"

"I'll remember," Naruto smiled.

"Hold out your hand, Naruto," Thor said and raised Mjolnir into the air. "Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of…Thor. Wield it with honor, Naruto," Thor said and handed Naruto the hammer. Naruto stared at the hammer for a moment. An electric hum, starting at his fingers, raced down his arm and filled his body. Naruto felt a new calm swell over him, the prelude to the new power he was about to claim. Naruto tightened his grip on the hammer's handle and raised it into the air.

A bolt of lightning enveloped him and the world turned white.

-T-

A boom of thunder shook the Forest of Death and Naruto stood up on the lake bottom. However, the lake was gone; the lightning had evaporated every trace of water there was. All that was left was a single fish, flopping around on the muddy ground, and a few specks of plant life here and there.

Naruto took a deep breath and looked around the forest, taking in the sights, sounds, and smells with his new senses. He could see flowers opening their petals on the other side of the lake; he could smell their aroma as easily as if he was holding them in his hand; and, lastly, he could her Sakura's screams from miles away.

Naruto reached down and picked Mjolnir up off the ground. He stared at the hammer and tossed it gently from hand to hand. Naruto gave the hammer a few test swings, gauging the weight, and surprised himself with the ease and familiarity he handled the hammer.

_Heh, Thor was right about having all of his memories, _Naruto thought. _It feels like I've used this hammer my whole life. But I'll have to figure the memory part out later; right now, it's time to give these new abilities a little test drive, Naruto style!_

Naruto slipped Mjolnir's leather thong around his wrist and whirled it over his head. The hammer blurred and, when Naruto flung it forward, both the hammer and thrower took off through the air.

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

I've had this in mind for a little while, haven't been able to shake it with all the promotion going on for the new movie. However, this fic will have more to do with the comic book THOR, not the movie. Thor has always been one of my favorite characters, both in comics and traditional mythology. I hope you all enjoy it and let me know how I did.

N.W.


	2. Chapter 2

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot, even that is a stretch sometimes.

WARNING: This chapter contains scenes of sexual harassment and violence. Those with delicate sensibilities should just walk away.

* * *

><p><em>Thunderer<em>

Chapter II

"Savior"

**Training Ground #44 aka "The Forest of Death"  
><strong>

Sakura panted heavily; her sweaty hair clung to her forehead, matted with blood; her left eye was swollen shut; and blood dripped from multiple cuts on her face, arms, and from a deep wound on her side where the Sound Genin dressed like a mummy hit her with a shuriken.

_This is bad,_ she thought in a near panic. _Those Sound Nin are too strong to just be any normal Genin. They powered right through all my traps; that one dressed like a mummy beat up Lee, and he beat Sasuke-kun! There's no way I can take them all at once. I'll have to wait until the rest of Lee's team comes looking for him for help._

Sakura jumped back as Dosu, the bandaged wrapped Genin, leapt at her and swung his strange Melody Arm at her. Even though she dodged the punch, the Melody Arm sent sound vibrations through the air and Sakura immediately lost her balance and felt nauseous. She fell to her knees and fought the urge to empty her stomach. For the first time in hours, Sakura was glad she hadn't eaten all day.

"You saw what my arm did to that spandex wearing fool and you still tried to dodge my attack?" Dosu sneered. "My Melody Arm will turn your insides into mush even faster than a punch would. Get her now, Kin!"

The girl on the team took aim and hurled a trio of senbon needles at Sakura. Sakura recovered and ducked at the last second. The needles landed harmlessly in the grass behind her.

_**Cha! Missed me! That's why I'm awesome and what you deserve for being so drab and ugly. There's a reason why Sasuke-kun wants me and no one else!"**_

Sakura smirked at the girl and drew a kunai before standing up. Just as she got to her feet, Sakura's vision began to distort and swirl. She stepped forward, only to wobble off balance and fell back to one knee. Sakura dropped her kunai and held her head, blinking rapidly. In front of her, there were suddenly five Sound girls instead of only one!

"What's wrong, pinky? Something out of whack with your vision?" Kin asked, her words dripping with venom. "This is only the first part of my Genjutsu. In Sound, this isn't even considered an attack; it's used for training academy level students on sensory impairment. Now this, on the other hand, is an attack."

Kin tugged on the ninja wire attached to her second senbon needle. A tiny bell twinkled with the tug, but to Sakura, it sounded like someone had struck a massive gong inside her head. The sound was brutally loud! Sakura fell face first to the ground, grabbed the sides of her head, and screamed. Sakura never heard herself scream, but it echoed through the forest and sent chills up the spines of the Genin within earshot.

Kin rolled her eyes as she stopped tugging on the ninja wire. Sakura rolled on the ground, sobbing and panting. Kin walked over and pushed Sakura onto her back with her toe.

"You really are pathetic," the Sound girl said. "My third bell would've driven you insane, turned you into a brain-fried waste of space. You wouldn't be good even for being a breeding dumpster. Lucky for you, you aren't worth using the chakra." Kin reached into her pouch and pulled out another trio of senbon. She held them in a tight fist, the razor sharp needles stuck out like claws between her knuckles.

Kin pulled Sakura up by her long hair and aimed the senbon at her throat. Sakura feebly tried to free herself, but lacked the strength to break Kin's grip on her hair; she didn't even have the strength to grab a kunai or shuriken out of her pack and cut her way out. She stared up at Kin and at the tips of the senbon and let out a pitiful whimper.

Kin's hand wavered and trembled. _It's her or me_, she told herself. _Zaku and Dosu will tell Lord Orochimaru if I don't kill her like we were told. C'mon girl, everyone has to make their first kill sometime._

"Hurry up Kin," Dosu growled. "We still have to kill the Uchiha and finish this ridiculous exam."

"Yeah, Kin," Zaku sneered. "If you aren't going to kill her, at least let me have some fun with her before she gets too bloody." He looked at Sakura and leered, undressing her with his dark eyes. Sakura flinched and tried to struggle away from Kin. Zaku took a step towards them and Sakura let out a feeble scream.

"You will not… touch Sakura-chan," Lee muttered as he struggled to get to his feet.

"Shut up!" Dosu yelled and knocked Lee back down with a backhand.

Kin grit her teeth and glared at Zaku, tempted to unleash a wave of holy fury upon him in the name of all womankind. But Zaku was stronger than she was and attacking him would only turn his perverted attentions toward her and, after hearing of Zaku's appetites in Sound, Kin was terrified of the possibility.

_I'm doing you a kindness, girl. Death will be a lot more pleasant that what Zaku has in mind for you. _Kin tightened her grip on Sakura's hair, took aim, and drew her hand back. The trio of senbon gleamed in the sunlight. Sakura looked away and closed her eyes tightly.

"Sorry pinky," Kin whispered and thrust her hand forward.

"Oh, no you don't!" screamed Ino as she crashed into the clearing. She kicked Kin across the chin in a picture perfect leaping kick that no one who knew Ino ever thought she was capable of doing. Kin flew backwards, dropping Sakura's hair and her senbon, and landed several feet away.

Choji and Shikamaru burst out of the forest behind Ino. Shikamaru glanced across the clearing, taking in as much information as he could, already forming strategies, while Choji popped a food pill in his mouth.

"Looks like we jumped in just in time," Shikamaru said. "Are you alright Sakura?"

Sakura looked up and nodded weakly towards Shikamaru. The pineapple-haired boy repressed a shudder.

_She's a wreck and not just physically. What the hell did these guys do to her?_ he wondered. "Get the girl, Ino. Choji and I will take care of these guys."

"You got it, Shika," Ino growled and flashed through several handsigns.

Across the clearing, Dosu and Zaku looked at each other and laughed. "What is it with these Leaf Genin?" Zaku asked.

"Like cockroaches," Dosu sneered.

"Each one as weak as the next," Zaku finished. "You take the one with funny hair and leave the girl for Kin. I'll take fatso."

Shikamaru, Ino, and even Sakura inhaled sharply. A dangerous quiet filled the clearing as they looked at Choji.

"What. Did. You. Call. Me?" the Akimichi asked.

"Fatso."

Choji's fists started to shake and the ground beneath him cracked and broke. "Call me fatso just one more time…"

"Fat—"

"I'M NOT FAT!" Choji roared and charged at Zaku. "Human Meat Tank!" Choji's body tripled in size as he became a massive ball of rotating muscle and flesh. He barreled at Zaku and nearly squashed the Sound Genin before he could jump aside. Choji spun into a tree and came around again, charging recklessly at Zaku.

Zaku grit his teeth and held his ground. "Decapitating Airwaves!" Zaku yelled and thrust his hands out at Choji. Columns of wind fired from the holes in Zaku's palms and crashed into Choji. For a moment, the power of Zaku's wind fought against the force of Choji's anger and the two forces held in a stalemate.

Choji let out a muffled roar as he spun faster against the wind and ground his way forward. A brace of kunai appeared across Choji's body, the spikes acting like cleats to increase traction and lethality of his attack.

_This isn't possible!_ Zaku panicked. _How can he be stronger than my attacks? I will not lose to this fat tub of piss!_

Zaku growled and channeled more chakra into his arms. His attack doubled in size and pushed Choji back again. Choji dug deeper and continued to grind forward. Zaku's arms began to waver in exhaustion and he canceled his jutsu and leapt out of the way, just before Choji barreled past!

Choji rolled into the tree line, using the tree trucks like a ramp to change direction, and hurtled back towards Zaku. Zaku cursed under his breath and tried to jump away again, but couldn't move! He looked down at his feet and saw a long black shadow attached to his own.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu successful," smiled Shikamaru, "Flatten him, Choji."

Zaku trembled as he watched the spiked ball of Akimichi whirl towards him. He struggled against the Nara's famous trap, but it was no use.

"You shouldn't have forgotten about me!" Dosu snarled as he charged at Choji. He leapt to Choji's side, away from the rows of kunai spikes, and whipped his Melody Arm at the boy. Air waves and vibrations assaulted Choji, made worse by the spinning of his Human Meat Tank jutsu. Choji spun out of control and headed straight for Shikamaru!

"You gotta be kidding me," Shikamaru complained as he canceled his containment jutsu and leapt out of the way. Choji crashed into a massive tree, a small explosion of wood splinters and dirt erupting outward, knocking himself out and trapping Shikamaru in the rubble.

"Thanks Dosu," Zaku said as he picked himself up. "That Shadow Jutsu is a royal pain in the ass."

"You got sloppy," Dosu growled. "I won't save you next time."

"Whatever. What should we do with them?" Zaku asked and gestured toward Choji and Shikamaru.

"I say we make them pay for interfering. And you know I like em big," Dosu sneered, a sick and perverted gleam in his visible eye.

"I still get the pink one then, maybe the blonde too," smiled Zaku. "Maybe Kin would like to play with the Nara? I hear they are naturally submissive to women; even a girl as weak as Kin would completely dominate this one."

"If you two are done with this perverted and blatant homoerotic male bonding, I suggest you pay attention to me," Kin said. She stood in front of Ino and Sakura with her own senbon needles at her throat.

"Kin, what the hell are you doing?" Zaku asked. "Get away from my treats and claim yours before I kill him out of boredom."

"You will not touch me, Sakura, or either of my teammates you sick bastard!" Kin roared and threw the senbon at Zaku. Zaku dodged them and pointed one of his hands at Kin.

"What the hell has gotten into you, Kin?"

"That's not Kin," Dosu whispered. "Look." Zaku craned his neck to the side and saw the blonde behind Kin slumped to the ground with her eyes closed. Zaku smiled.

"Ah, the ol' Yamanaka mind walk. Well, then I guess I have to surrender or else you'll kill my precious teammate, right?"

"Who's a smart boy?" Ino said through Kin. "Just leave and I'll release her once we're safe."

"Uh-huh, ok. And, just so we're clear, what will happen if we don't?" asked Zaku.

"Then your teammate dies, painfully." A fresh handful of senbon appeared in Kin's hand and tickled the underside of her chin.

"Sounds good to me!" Zaku laughed and fired a column of air at Kin. Kin's eyes closed and snapped open as Ino cut off her jutsu and returned to her own body, leaving Kin in the way of the blast of wind. The column hit Kin in the chest and knocked her into the air, slamming her into the trees. She landed amongst the tree roots, her back twisted at an unhealthy and unnatural angle.

"Wh-what are you doing?" shouted Ino. "She was your teammate!"

"She was a weakling and a loose end," Zaku said as he walked toward Ino. Terrified and shocked, Ino drew a kunai and swung wildly at Zaku. He dodged her first swipe easily and caught her by the wrist.

"In Sound, there is no room for weakness," he said and twisted Ino's wrist. She screamed as it broke and the kunai fell from her hand. Zaku slapped her hard, knocking her down. "Only the strong survive and," he knelt down over her and began groping Ino's waist and chest, "to the victor goes the spoils."

Ino struggled, but she was unable to break Zaku's hold on her. She cast a panicked look at her teammates, but they both remained unconscious. Ino even looked at Sakura for help, but the girl was in no condition to do anything.

Suddenly, a kunai buried itself in the ground between Zaku's probing hand and Ino, drawing a thin line of blood on Zaku's hand.

"Who threw that?" Zaku roared as he whirled around. "Who threw that?"

"I did," a low voice whispered from the darkness of the tent Sakura had set up earlier. Sasuke stepped out of the tent, wreathed in shadow, and walked toward the others.

"Sasuke-kun…" Ino muttered. "Be careful. They're…they're both so strong."

_That doesn't matter, Ino-pig, _Sakura thought, a smile cracking her swollen and bloody face. _My Sasuke-kun is going to save me, just like I saved him. It's perfect._

"It looks like there is some sort of party going on out here," Sasuke said. His voice was deeper than usual, with a sinister laughter beneath it. "But a party isn't a party until the guest of honor arrives and an Uchiha is always the guest of honor."

"What are you doing? You're supposed to be out cold for hours; we were told you'd still be out!" Zaku shouted, panic sneaking into his voice.

"Sorry to disappoint you," Sasuke growled and the Cursed Seal on his neck began to spread. Like flames, the mark raced across Sasuke's left side, down his arm and leg, and across his face. Even Sasuke's eyes were affected; the corrupted chakra turned his sclera black, making his Sharingan blaze like a fire in the night.

"It makes no difference whether he's awake or asleep," Dosu snapped. "He's going to die!" He leapt at Sasuke, swinging his Melody Gauntlet at the Uchiha. Sasuke stood still and smiled as the Gauntlet passed straight threw him!

"Damn, he's just an illusion!" Dosu cursed. "Where is he?"

"Behind you," Sasuke whispered into Dosu's ear and snaked his arm around the Sound Genin's neck in a classic chokehold. A quick squeeze of corrupted chakra-fueled muscle and Dosu collapsed. Sasuke dropped Dosu carelessly and turned toward Zaku. "Now for you."

"You dirty Uchiha! I'll kill you and Orochimaru will reward me with whatever I want!" Zaku yelled and threw his hands forward. "Extreme Decapitating Airwaves!"

An enormous rush of air shot out of Zaku's arms, blasting away the ground in front of him. The airwaves rushed at Sasuke; but the Uchiha merely smirked and flashed through hand seals, ending on Tiger.

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke smiled and exhaled. An enormous fireball, larger than any Sasuke had ever created before, launched at Zaku and met the expanding field of supersonic air. Sasuke's fireball swallowed up the rush of air and instantly tripled in size!

"What? That's impossible!" screamed Zaku as the fireball rushed towards him. He leapt away just in time, the fireball burning the soles of his feet and the hairs off the back of his neck. He landed awkwardly and rolled on the ground to put out the tiny fires on his feet and legs. When he stood up, Sasuke was nowhere to be found!

"I'm surprised you used a wind technique against an Uchiha," Sasuke's voice whispered across the clearing. "After all, my clan was famous for using fire techniques and wind fuels fire!" Sasuke appeared in a blur behind Zaku and kicked Zaku in the back of the knee. Zaku stumbled forward, arms flailing, and he was about to hit the ground when he stopped. Zaku felt pressure on his arms, shoulders, and back. He craned his neck around and saw Sasuke behind him, a foot in his back, and his arms twisted unnaturally.

"You must be very proud of these arms," Sasuke sneered, "to try and use them against an elite shinobi like me." Sasuke twisted Zaku's left arm roughly and Zaku screamed.

"Even I have to admit, these arms are impressive," Sasuke continued. "Perhaps I'll keep one as a souvenir." Another twist and Zaku's left arm dislocated and broke in several places. Sasuke kicked Zaku away and turned toward Sakura and Ino.

_Something's wrong,_ Ino thought as she cradled her wrist to her body._ What's happened to you, Sasuke-kun?_

"Hello girls," Sasuke grinned as he approached. "You don't know how glad I am that you're both here. All this excitement has really given me a big appetite."

"Sasuke-kun, what happened to you?" asked Ino.

"There's no need to be worried, Ino; no need to fear my new power. I finally have the way to avenge my clan and move on. Don't you want to help me revive my clan?" Sasuke asked and reached out to touch Ino. She shrunk away from his touch and his fingers grazed her broken arm.

"Sasuke, my arm!" Ino wailed and tried to stumble backwards, but Sasuke was too fast. He lashed out and grabbed her by the front of her shirt. He pulled her close to him, ignoring her cries of pain and fear.

"What's the matter, Ino? I thought you'd love to be this close to me. Isn't that what you and Sakura always fought about?"

Ino cringed and turned her head away from Sasuke's; his breath was foul and the dark marks continued to spread across his face.

"Sakura…" Ino whispered a plea for help. Sakura struggled to get up, but fell back down after only a few inches.

"Don't worry about Sakura. I'll have her right after you," Sasuke leered. "Like I said, all that fighting left me with a big appetite." He tightened his grip on Ino's shirt and pulled, ripping the top in two and reveling Ino's pale, bra-clad chest. Her short skirt quickly followed. Sasuke's lust-filled eyes widened in their appreciation of Ino's assets and his hand reached toward her again.

"Please…someone…" Ino whispered and closed her eyes tight. She felt Sasuke's fingertips on her bra, felt the pit in her stomach deepen and repulsion crawl up her spine… and then there was nothing. No unwanted touch, no pawing fingers, no rank breath.

Ino opened her eyes just a fraction. Sasuke was still right in front of her, but she no longer held his attention. His black and red eyes were turned skyward. Ino followed his gaze and saw a young man hovering in the air above them.

"What the hell?" she muttered, Sasuke and her vulnerable state temporarily forgotten.

The figure slowly descended in front of them, his muscular arms crossed over his broad chest. The figure had shaggy, long blonde hair and, while obviously still a young teen, was more muscular than any teen Sasuke had ever seen. He was dressed in dark blue pants, heavy combat boots, and an armored vest. The vest was the same dark blue as the pants and had four glowing circles in its center. A massive metal belt was tied around his waist with two more glowing circles on its center. A thick stone hammer with a short handle hung from the belt.

"Stay thy hand villain! What kind of sick animal preys on his own comrades and teammates?" the stranger asked, his long blonde hair concealing his face. "What is all over your face, Sasuke-teme?"

"You know who I am and you still dare you interfere in Uchiha business?" Sasuke growled. "Come down here and I'll show you why I am the elite of all shinobi!"

"Elite or not, this shall not stand! You will not lay another finger on Ino or Sakura!" the stranger said and held his hammer in front of him.

"Uchiha do what they want; besides, they are honored by my affections!" Sasuke roared and charged at the stranger. Sasuke reared back and threw a heavy punch to the stranger's face. Sasuke smirked until the stranger's hair blew aside and he saw six whisker-like scars on the stranger's face.

"Is that all you got, teme?" Naruto whispered, completely unaffected by Sasuke's punch.

_I put everything I had into that punch!_ Sasuke thought. _Where has Naruto gotten such power?_

"Take this! Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke growled and launched a fireball even larger than the one he fired at Zaku toward Naruto. Naruto sidestepped out of the way and dashed toward Sasuke. He closed the distance in the blink of an eye. Naruto reached out and backhanded Sasuke savagely, launching the corrupted Genin across the clearing and into a thick tree truck. Sasuke let out a single groan of pain before he slumped forward, unconscious. The flame-like marks on his body flared for a heartbeat before receding back into the original three tomoe seal.

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the receded Cursed Seal, still feeling its evil in the air, before he turned towards Ino.

"Ino," he said gently as he knelt down in front of her. Ino scurried back a foot, still terrified and sickened by Sasuke's assault. Naruto reached out and gently touched Ino's good arm. She flinched, but finally focused her eyes on Naruto.

"Naruto…"

"It is alright, Ino. Sasuke will not harm you again. Here," he said and held out the tattered remains of his orange jumpsuit. "I am afraid there is very little of my old clothes left, but I feel they will serve better than what remains of your own."

Ino suddenly realized her state of undress, blushed brightly, and snatched the clothing out of Naruto's hands. "Naruto! What are you doing? You aren't supposed to look at a girl when she's like this!"

Naruto blushed as well and turned aside like a proper gentleman. While Ino changed, Naruto checked on his other teammate.

"Are you alright Sakura?" The pinkette looked up at Naruto and squinted through her swollen eyes.

"Naruto, you missed it," she whispered. "Sasuke…he saved me and Ino. He flew in like a shining knight and beat the Sound Genin like they were nothing. He really does care about me. Why did you have to interrupt?"

_Poor girl, she's in shock, _Naruto thought. _She really doesn't know that Sasuke attacked Ino and would've raped Ino and then her._

"We need to get your wounds cared for, the others too. I will get you to the tower I saw when I flew here," Naruto said.

Ino returned, now dressed in the top of Naruto's old jumpsuit. The jacket covered her arms and body, but left her legs bare. Naruto had to catch himself from staring too much, reminding himself that she had just escaped a truly horrific experience. She quickly rushed to her teammates and began to check over them. Shikamaru suffered from a broken rib and dislocated shoulder while Choji suffered from a concussion. Off to the side, Lee was covered in bruises and was moaning painfully. Ino tried to help them as much as she could half-naked and with her own injuries.

Naruto walked toward Sakura. The beaten girl had crawled across the clearing and draped herself over Sasuke's unconscious body.

"Sasuke-kun? Wake up Sasuke-kun. It's alright, I won't let Naruto-baka attack you like that again," she whispered. "I'm going to take care of you once we get back to the village."

"Sakura, are you alright?" Naruto asked.

"Leave us alone, Naruto-baka!" Sakura yelled with a strength that betrayed her injuries. "Haven't you done enough damage for one day?"

Naruto frowned at the girl's accusations before he walked back towards Ino and the others. "How are they?" he asked her.

"They'll be ok, but we got to get outta here. I don't suppose you have some scrolls to go with those new muscles and hammer? What happened to you anyway?"

"That is a tale for another time; I'm sure the Hokage will require answers as well and I would rather only have to explain once. Now brace yourself; I've never tried this before."

Before Ino could protest, Naruto lifted his hammer and whirled it over his head. Lightning sparked from Mjolnir until it was nothing but a glowing blur spinning over Naruto's head. Naruto slammed the hammer down on the ground and the world vanished in white light.

**-T-**

**Training Ground #44 Central Tower**

Ino collapsed to her knees and vomited what little remained in her stomach. For the first time in days, she was glad she hadn't eaten more than a few ration bars and soldier pills since the second part of the exams started.

She shook her head and looked around. The forest was gone and she was lying on a wooden floor inside a large room. Naruto was standing over her, smoke drifting off his hammer. Choji, Lee, Shikamaru, Sakura, and Sasuke were lying on the floor around the room, all still injured and as sick as she was.

"What's going on? How did we get here?" she wondered. She burped slightly, making a face at the revolting taste in her mouth.

"Sorry about that," Naruto grinned sheepishly. "The memories never mentioned anything about motion sickness."

"What memories? How did you do that?" Ino demanded to know. Naruto looked away from Ino, as if he was going to pull the answer out of thin air. She scowled at him with her most serious and mean face, but Naruto continued to scratch his head and pretend not to notice her. Ino was about to bash the fellow blonde on the head when the door slammed open.

"What's going on in here?" Iruka asked as he burst into the room. "Naruto! What happened to you? How did you all sneak in here without using the scrolls? You're all going to get disqualified from the exams!"

"Calm down Iruka-sensei," Naruto said, waving his hands at the Chunin. "I'll take care of the scrolls; Ino will explain what's going on." Naruto waved Mjolnir in the air again and disappeared in a bolt of lightning.

Iruka's jaw dropped and threatened to hit the floor. "What…huh…how…Naruto…"

"Yeah, I don't have an answer for that one yet either," Ino said sarcastically and carefully shifted her broken arm. "Do you think you could call for a medical-nin while we talk, Iruka-sensei? We're all pretty hurt here and it's a long story."

"Oh, of course Ino," Iruka stammered as he snapped back to reality and called for a medic.

Five minutes later,

An entire team of medical-nin hustled around the room, working on Team Seven and Team Ten. Iruka paced back and forth, trying to help the medics but mostly just getting in their way. Ino laid back on a makeshift cot, her arm in a sling and Naruto's old jumpsuit still wrapped around her body. Her eyes were heavy from the pain medication the medics gave her and the others; her vision was glossy and everything had a pleasant haze about it.

When Naruto reappeared in a bolt of white lightning, all Ino did was smile.

Everyone else jumped back ten feet.

"Hey Naruto," Ino smiled and gave a droopy wave.

"Feeling better Ino-chan?" Naruto asked. Ino gave him a thumbs up before relaxing deeper into the cot.

"Alright Naruto, enough is enough," Iruka scolded. "You better stop scaring hell out of everyone, popping in and out of the place with bolts of lightning and swinging around a giant hammer, and start explaining!"

"I would like to know as well," the Sandaime Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, said as he stepped into the room. Beneath his massive hat, the Hokage smoked his pipe and smiled curiously at Naruto's new form. "It seems that this year's Chunin Exams have been more exciting than usual. What happened to everyone? And what happened to you Naruto?"

"I figured you would show up, Old Man," Naruto nodded and tossed four scrolls to Iruka. "Give these to Ino's team and to Lee's when they get here. That should clear them for the next part of the Exams."

"Where did you get these scrolls?" Iruka asked as he caught the scrolls.

"The Rain ninja about two miles from here carried them," Naruto said. "I beat them and took them. How else would I get scrolls for everybody?"

Iruka looked at Naruto like he had just sprouted a second head from his neck. "You left the tower, beat a squad of Rain ninja that had already taken out at least three other teams and gotten their scrolls, took those scrolls, and got back here in only five minutes?"

"Well I would've been back sooner, but it took me a minute to find them," Naruto said with a grin. "Tell Sakura and Sasuke-teme I'm hanging on to ours. Lead the way Old Man."

**-T-**

"…so you're this Thor person now?" Sarutobi asked, his voice heavy with skepticism. It had taken Naruto nearly ten minutes to tell the Hokage his story after the Third body flickered them to his office.

"Sort of. I'm still Naruto, I just have all of Thor's memories and will slowly gain all his abilities as I train and grow up," Naruto explained. He rubbed the back of his head and shrugged. "It's all kinda confusing."

Sarutobi sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose; he could already feel the migraine approaching. "Naruto, this is not the time for one of your pranks. Now drop the transformation jutsu and tell me what happened out there and how you created all that lightning."

"This is no prank, Old Man," Naruto protested. "This isn't a transformation and I really found Mjolnir in the Forest of Death after Orochimaru-teme attack us. Shouldn't you be more worried about him right now?"

"That is enough Naruto! Stop fooling around and making up wild stories!" the Hokage shouted and slammed his hand onto his desk. "Our intelligence forces would have heard if Orochimaru was within fifty miles of Konoha. I need to know what happened to Sasuke and the others, not hear some made up story about a little hammer and ancient mythical gods!"

"I am telling you the truth," Naruto growled. Tiny bolts of lightning cackled across Mjolnir's surface as Naruto struggled to control his emotions at the Hokage's unintentional insults to Mjolnir and his new powers. "If you aren't going to believe me, I need to get back and make sure the others are ok."

Naruto turned to leave and was nearly knocked over by Anko as she stormed into the Hokage's office.

"Hokage-sama! Orochimaru has infiltrated the Chunin Exams!" she shouted breathlessly.

"Not you too," Sarutobi groaned and collapsed onto his desk. "This has gone too far, Naruto! And Anko! I can't believe you would let Naruto put you up to this sort of thing. I know you have a sick sense of humor with all the bloodthirstiness and your—ahem—creative ways of interrogation, but this is totally unacceptable behavior for a Special Jonin."

Anko looked at the Hokage and then at Naruto. "What the hell is he talking about, brat?"

"I told you I wasn't making things up, Old Man!"

Sarutobi pinched his nose again, but there was no stopping the migraine. "Alright, alright; Anko, please report."

"My Cursed Seal tried to activate and that only happens when Orochimaru-teme is nearby," explained Anko. "I ran into the Forest and felt Orochimaru-teme's chakra pulse. He gave someone else a Cursed Seal like mine."

"Sasuke. He gave it to Sasuke," Naruto interjected.

"Yeah, that's what Orochimaru-teme said. He said the Uchiha is his new prize, that he'll make Sasuke greater than any of the Sannin, he'll have his revenge, blah blah blah. The bastard worm still loves the sound of his own voice."

"Wait, you actually saw Orochimaru?" Sarutobi asked.

"Saw him, I fought the perverted pedophile," Anko grinned savagely, before she frowned. "I almost had him, but he switched himself with a Mud Clone before I could blow his tiny pecker straight to hell."

Sarutobi let out a heavy sigh and pulled a bottle of sake out of his desk. He poured a healthy amount into a glass and downed it in a single gulp. "So he's really back. Naruto, go back to the tower and tell Iruka that the rest of the Exams are postponed indefinitely. Anko, alert every ANBU, Jonin, and Special Jonin in the village. Tell them to get into the Forest with a fine toothed comb until they find my wayward student."

"I—I can't, Hokage-sama," Anko said, looking away from the Hokage. "The bastard gave me a message for you. He said that if we cancel the exams, if they aren't finished according to schedule, Orochimaru said he would…" Anko stopped, her clenched fists shaking at her sides.

"What did he say Anko?" Sarutobi asked. "I need to know his exact words."

"He said he'd kill every civilian and ninja in Konoha and that he'd use the kunoichi for his experiments, okay?" Anko shouted and grabbed the seal on her neck. "He said I would have to watch until I was the last one left," she whispered.

"I'm sorry Anko," Sarutobi said. "I know your former sensei is a very sensitive subject for you and I didn't mean to push. Go back to the Forest with Neko's ANBU cell; see if you can find any trace of Orochimaru and watch over any of the teams still in the Forest. Orochimaru isn't the type to only have one plan. He may be after Sasuke, but I'm sure he has other reasons for coming back to Konoha."

"Yes sir," Anko nodded and looked at Naruto. "So what happened to you? Looks like puberty ran you over like a freight train. Nice hammer though, brat. Wardrobe still sucks, but at least you found a nice new toy. All you need now is someone to nail." She licked her lips before she flickered away with a snake-like hiss and a swirl of green leaves.

Naruto looked at Sarutobi for an explanation, but the Hokage simply smiled and shook his head.

"There is no explaining her, my boy. Any ninja worth his or her salt is bound to become a bit eccentric over time. We all have our ways to cope with the life."

"Like keeping a stash of porn in the bottom left drawer of your desk," grinned Naruto.

"Like keeping a stash of…ahem, I have no idea what you're speaking of," Sarutobi coughed before straightening himself out behind the desk and narrowed his eyes. Going back to Hokage-mode, Naruto called it.

"Return to the tower Naruto, the exams will have to continue as scheduled. Keep an eye on the others until the next stage of the exams in two days. We'll finish our discussion about your new abilities after the next stage."

"Whatever you say, Old Man," Naruto said and pulled his hammer out of his belt. He swung it overhead and slammed it onto the office floor. Naruto vanished in a bolt of lightning, leaving the Hokage amazed…until he spotted the smoldering burn mark on his office floor.

"NARUTO!"

**-T-**

Naruto smirked as he walked back through the Central Tower. He could almost hear the Hokage's wail even from the Forest of Death.

_New body, new hammer, new powers, and I can still terrorize the Old Man like it's my job, _Naruto smirked as he walked. He headed toward the room where he had left Ino and the others, but it was empty. He continued around the tower until he heard footsteps approaching behind him. Naruto turned around, hoping to get some information on where everyone had disappeared to. When Sasuke appeared on the other end of the hallway, Naruto slumped and leaned against the hallway wall.

"I'm surprised to see you're awake, Sasuke-teme," Naruto greeted. "I figured you'd be out from the chakra exhaustion for at least another half a day."

"Hmmph," Sasuke grunted in return. "What happened to you, idiot? You look like a girl with that long hair."

"Still looks better than a duck's ass sticking out the back of my head," Naruto smirked. "You know, you should get that snake hickey looked at. What you did back in the forest was horrific."

"What did I do?" Sasuke smirked. "I really don't remember; my memory of the entire forest is a complete blank."

With a growl befitting an angry Frost Giant, Naruto sprang off the wall and got right in Sasuke's face. He grabbed the front of Sasuke's shirt, picked the teen off the ground, and slammed Sasuke against the wall.

"Listen, thou stain of Niffleheim excrement," Naruto snarled, Thor's influence coming out as Naruto grew angrier. "I know you know what happened back there. And I know that it wasn't just Orochimaru's Curse Seal influencing you. Deep down, you took sick enjoyment in what you were doing."

"And what if I did?" Sasuke snapped back, his Sharingan whirling. "For years those girls hounded my every step, practically begging for me to take them. And when it happens, they pretend not to enjoy it."

The Cursed Seal of Heaven on Sasuke's neck stirred and began to slowly spread across Sasuke's neck and back. Naruto's nose wrinkled at the smell of the corrupt chakra. He spun Sasuke off the wall and dropped him to the floor. Sasuke struggled, but Naruto was too strong. Naruto held him down with one hand and drew Mjolnir with the other.

"I should scatter your vile thoughts across this floor for speaking thus," Naruto growled. Sasuke stared up at Naruto, his Sharingan spinning, trying to influence Naruto not to smash his face into mush.

"Those eyes of yours won't work on me, worm," Naruto said. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Naruto lowered Mjolnir and let go of Sasuke. "We're still teammates, so I will let you go with a single warning. Do not go near Ino or Sakura ever again. Do not look at them. Do not speak to them. If I find out you ever raise your voice at them or lay a finger on them again or even give them a questionable look, I will end you."

Naruto straightened his armored vest and turned to walk away, continue to try and find Ino and the others.

"This isn't over, idiot," Sasuke growled from the floor. "This power, my revenge, the girls…it will all be mine and there isn't a damn thing you or anyone else can do about it."

Naruto froze, his fist tightening around Mjolnir's handle, and turned back. His normally cool blue eyes darkened like the sea during a storm and a tendril of lightning sparked off his shoulder and into the hallway wall. Sasuke took an involuntary scoot backwards.

"Don't try my patience and hold no illusions. If I didn't need you alive for the rest of the Exams, I would smite thee into a pile of ash," Naruto said before his eyes lightened and the lightning ceased. "But don't think you will not be punished."

Naruto flipped Mjolnir in the air casually as Sasuke stood up to face him. Once Sasuke was up on his feet, Naruto threw Mjolnir lightly at Sasuke. The hammer hit Sasuke in the chest and knocked him back onto the ground. Sasuke struggled and flared his chakra, both his own and the Cursed Seals, but he couldn't budge the enchanted hammer.

"Get this thing off of me!" he shouted beneath the mystical weight.

"I think a little time out would do you good," Naruto said with a wide, almost fox-like grin. "I'll come back in a few hours, after I've seen how Ino and the others are doing. Maybe by then, you won't be such a pain in the ass."

Naruto gave Sasuke a little wave before turning on his heel and walking away, smiling while Sasuke shouted and cursed behind him.

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTE:<p>

Hope you all enjoyed the last chapter and I hope I didn't upset anyone with any of the content. And before anyone says anything: NO I haven't decided on a pairing(s) and NO none of the scenes in the last chapter imply any future pairing(s)!

Aside from the possible pairings, I hope you liked the action. I tried to take the canon scenes and add my own twist and take on them. I didn't want to show too much of Naruto's new abilities/powers right off the bat, but I feel I gave a good preview of things to come.

NEXT CHAPTER: THE CHUNIN EXAM PRELIMINARY MATCHUPS!

Please note that this next chapter will take a long time to write. Not only do I want to finish the next chapters for _The Gunslinger_ and _Rise of the Espers_ (both of which are outlined and about 40-45% written, I hope to finish at least _The Gunslinger_ by next week), but I am basically completely changing up the Prelim matchups. There will probably be one or less matches that follow the Naruto canon. I have some wicked ideas of how I want the matches to go and the Finals that follow. If you would like something to amuse yourselves for the next few weeks, you're welcome to take guesses as to the matchups.

Please Read and Review!

Until Next Time,

N.W.


	3. Chapter 3

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto or Thor. This is just for fun.

UPDATE! The formatting error has been fixed. There was an issue with transferring and exchanging documents on different word processors and I just didn't catch it. Apologies to all who know me and know that my work is better than that and a big fat pile of crap to everyone that complained without giving the benefit of the doubt. N.W.

* * *

><p>Thunderer<p>

Chapter 3

"Preliminaries"

**Training Ground #44 a.k.a. "The Forest of Death"**

The next two days passed quickly for the teams inside the Central Tower. Given a reprieve from the Chunin Exams, teams were given personal quarters to wash, eat, and rest until the second exam deadline and the exams could continue. Genin teams came and went about the tower, talking to allies and comrades, avoiding the competition as much as possible. Those Genin that didn't have the required scrolls were healed and escorted out of the forest; their exam was over. Medical ninja shuffled back and forth between the different quarters, healing and restoring the Genin as much as they could. Those that were too badly injured to continue were given a choice: withdrawal from the exams or continue at less than one hundred percent. Aside from healing the wounded and restoring those with chakra exhaustion, the medical ninja carried gossip between quarters, casually informing other competitors about the going on of their competitors, but never giving away too much information.

Finally as the exam deadline passed, a voice echoed through the tower's speaker system. "ALL GENIN PROCEDE TO THE BASEMENT FOR THE FINAL STAGE OF THE PRELIMINARY CHUNIN EXAMS!"

Naruto stood in the doorway of his room, shadowed by the dark. None of the other competitors or even his teammates saw him as they walked by, which was the way Naruto wanted it. His last encounter with his team had left Naruto feeling more alone than ever.

_Naruto flipped Mjolnir in the air casually as Sasuke stood up to face him. Once Sasuke was up on his feet, Naruto threw Mjolnir lightly at Sasuke. The hammer hit Sasuke in the chest and knocked him back onto the ground. Sasuke struggled and flared his chakra, both his own and the Cursed Seals, but he couldn't budge the enchanted hammer._

"_Get this thing off of me!" he shouted beneath the mystical weight._

"_I think a little time out would do you good," Naruto said with a wide, almost fox-like grin. "I'll come back in a few hours, after I've seen how Ino and the others are doing. Maybe by then, you won't be such a pain in the ass."_

_Naruto gave Sasuke a little wave before turning on his heel and walking away, smiling while Sasuke shouted and cursed behind him._

_Naruto walked down the hall, his boots made small echoes on the floor, and he stopped in front of Team Seven's assigned quarters. He opened the door silently and stepped into the room. There were three beds and a tray of food inside; the food was untouched and only one of the beds was occupied._

_Sakura dozed beneath a thin sheet on one of the beds, tossing and turning fitfully. A floorboard squeaked as Naruto walked toward one of the empty beds and Sakura's eyes snapped open._

"_Sasuke-kun? Is that you?" she asked and sat up. The thin sheet covering her fell away; her face and body were wrapped in heavy white bandages. The sight filled Naruto with regret, repulsion, and rage._

"_It's just me Sakura," Naruto answered softly._

"_Naruto, where—where am I? Where's Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked. She tried to step out of bed, but her injuries cried out in pain and she fell back into bed._

"_Take it easy, Sakura," Naruto said as he rushed to her bedside. "You're in pretty bad shape. Those Sound ninja beat you and the others pretty bad before I got there. You're recovering in the Forest's Central Tower; we've got a few days before the Chunin Exams continue."_

"_The Sound Ninja…I—I remember them; they were so horrible and strong. But where's Sasuke-kun, Naruto? Is he alright? I want to see him!"_

"_Jeez, you have a one track mind. Sasuke's here in the tower. He's fine, physically at least. He's taking a time out right now."_

"_I want to see him," Sakura insisted and tried to get out of bed again. "In the Forest, he saved us."_

"_You don't remember anything else, Sakura? You don't remember what else Sasuke did in the Forest to Ino, what he wanted to do to you?"_

"_What are you talking about?"_

"_Sakura, Sasuke tried to rape Ino, he hurt her! He was going to do the same thing to you!"_

_Sakura stared at Naruto, her mouth open and slack, her breath coming in deep panicked gulps. "I can't believe it…"_

"_Yeah, it's pretty bad," Naruto whispered and rubbed the back of his head. He really didn't know what to do; comforting distraught girls wasn't exactly Naruto's forte. He reached out and touched her shoulder, but Sakura flinched away from him._

"_I can't believe you'd make up something like that! "How dare you badmouth Sasuke like that? I can't believe you'd invent these terrible lies to make yourself look better!" Sakura snapped and tried to slap Naruto across the cheek. Her injuries stopped her and she fell back into bed, whimpering in pain. _

"_What are you talking about?" Naruto asked, taken back by Sakura's sudden fury._

"_Sasuke-kun saved us and all you did was show up late and get in the way! I swear, if you've ruined Sasuke-kun's chances at becoming a Chunin, I'll pummel you into next year!"_

_Naruto stared at Sakura, completely flabbergasted. "I can't believe you'd still defend him even now."_

"_Cha! I'll always be at Sasuke-kun's side! And when he becomes a Chunin, I'll be the one that helps him revive his clan and take down his brother. And not you or Ino or anyone is going to stop me!" Sakura yelled._

_Sparks of lightning twitched off Naruto's knuckles as his fists shook. "Thou art the most foolish whelp of a girl in all the Nine Realms," he growled and stomped away from the bed. He flung open the door and nearly crashed into Kakashi, who had his hand raised to knock on the door._

"_Yo," he said and eye smiled. "Just the two I was looking for. How are you feeling, Sakura?"_

"_Fine," growled Sakura through tightly clenched teeth._

"_That's good. Naruto, can I borrow you for a moment?" Kakashi asked. Naruto cast one last glance at the smoldering Sakura and nodded, brushing past Kakashi on his way out. The one eyed Jonin waved goodbye to Sakura and followed Naruto down the hall._

"_Naruto, where are you going?"_

"_Back into the Forest; it's friendlier there," the blonde growled. "Perhaps I can find a pair of rabid wolves to be my new teammates."_

"_Yes, about the Forest. I wanted to ask you what happened to you all out there. I've heard some pretty ridiculous stories and I couldn't understand Sasuke beneath that hammer. I wonder where that came from anyway?"_

"_It's mine. Changed a little bit in the last few days, if you haven't noticed," Naruto muttered._

"_Um-hmm. Did you do something with your hair?" Kakashi asked. Naruto rolled his eyes and stopped in his tracks._

"_Ok, enough with the cryptic. We entered the forest, fought a Grass-ninja that was really Orochimaru in disguise, I nearly got ate by a giant snake, Orochimaru hit me with some purple fire jutsu that messed up my chakra a lot, then he bit Sasuke and gave him some crazy hickey. I nearly died again, I found a mystical hammer and gained the powers and memories of the god of thunder, Sakura got messed up by a bunch of Sound Genin, Sasuke went nuts, he tried to rape Ino and would've raped Sakura too. I stopped him and I brought everyone back here. There, whole story. Happy?"_

"_Sasuke would never rape anyone," Kakashi shook his head and waved off Naruto's comments. "You said Orochimaru bit him? Well, he obviously must have done something to Sasuke's mind to make him temporarily insane or something."_

"_I know what I saw, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto growled. "And I know what I heard from that bastard's own mouth. There is nothing temporary about this. He's lucky all I did was put him in timeout."_

"_Oh, so that's your hammer pinning Sasuke to the ground?" Kakashi asked with an amused tone. "How did you manage to move that thing? Did you just henge something small into that hammer because even I couldn't lift it even after enhancing my muscles with chakra?"_

"_Is there anything else you needed, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked bluntly. The conversation with Kakashi had just added to the bitter taste left in his mouth from Sakura's accusations. Naruto wanted to get as far away from his team as the Chunin Exam rules allowed._

"_Well, since it is your hammer or whatever, would you mind removing it from Sasuke? I need to have him examined by a specialist if he was really attacked by Orochimaru."_

"_What about Sakura? She had a much harder time of it that Sasuke did! What about me? I nearly got killed and you haven't even batted an eye out of concern for me!" Naruto shouted._

"_Please Naruto, people in this hallway are trying to rest. Clearly, you're over exaggerating because you're standing here without a single scratch on you and Sakura has already been treated by the finest medical ninja in Konoha; there isn't anything I could do for her that already hasn't been done. But no one knew that Orochimaru attacked Sasuke like that. It could have dire consequences for not only Sasuke, but for the whole village as well."_

"_Yeah, the Council would be furious if they lost their precious last Uchiha."_

"_Now you're just sounding jealous and immature, Naruto," Kakashi scolded. "Why don't you go get something to eat and relax a little before the rest of the exams? I expect my entire time to continue advancing."_

_Naruto rolled his eyes, turned, and started walking away when he heard Kakashi cough._

"_Umm, the hammer, Naruto?"_

_Naruto sighed and held out his right hand. A second later, a gray blur shot by Kakashi's head, parting his peculiar hair. Naruto held Mjolnir above his head for a moment before he gave Kakashi a smirk and walked away._

"_That must have been one long chakra wire," Kakashi muttered, still in shock._

Naruto watched as the last competitor, a dark-skinned Genin from Kumo, ran past before he stepped into the hallway. He walked with his shoulders hunched forward and his head down.

_How__ come__ Thor __never __had __to __deal __with __idiot __teammates__ like __this? __Sure __Hawkeye __was __an __ex-criminal __and __Iron __Man__ was__ a __miserable __drunk, __but __at __least __they __were __still __helpful __and__ never __tried __to __screw__ Thor __over, _Naruto thought as he entered through a pair of double doors. The basement was a massive underground arena. The far end of the arena was taken up by a pair of massive stone arms and hands crossed in the Ram seal. The floor was tiled out of thick hunks of stone and there was a catwalk and staircase on both sides of the arena. The Hokage, all the Jonin senseis, and the two other proctors stood in front of the statue. Naruto filed in behind the other Genin candidates as the Hokage stepped forward.

"Welcome and congratulations on making it to almost the final round of the Chunin Exam!" the Hokage smiled. "Now, I say almost the final round because we have the honor of having so many exceptional candidates that we need to hold a series of preliminary matches to narrow down the field before the respected dignitaries arrive to observe the final matches. Do you know why the Chunin Exams exist?"

"Duh, to figure out who's gonna be promoted to Chunin," Yoroi Akado muttered. Naruto tightened his grip around Mjolnir's handle. _Leaf __Ninja __should __have __more __respect __for __the __Hokage __than __this. __I __might __call __him __Old __Man,__but __it__'__s __still __with__ the __utmost__ respect._

"While the Exams do allow the various Kages a chance to see their ninja forces in action and thus promote those that earned it," the Hokage continued, either not hearing or ignoring Yoroi's comment. "The Chunin Exams are in reality a simulated war between Hidden Villages! You are all soldiers, looking to bring further glory for yourself and your Hidden Village."

The twenty-one candidates all looked slightly shocked and looked at each other. The same thought raced through all their minds:

_This is a whole new level._

"The preliminary matches will be as follows," the Hokage began, but was cut off by a pale and sickly looking Jonin.

"As referee, may I?" he asked politely. The Hokage nodded and stepped back.

"I am Gekko Hayate; I'll be the referee for the preliminary matches," the pale Jonin coughed.

"Great a judge from the Leaf, that'll be real fair," Kankuro said with an eye roll.

"I heard that," Hayate growled before ruining the intimidation by having a coughing fit. It was some time before he was able to continue. "As I was saying, all matches will be called fairly because there is very little to referee. All matches are no-jutsu barred, any and all techniques are allowed. Fights are over when a combatant is knocked unconscious, killed, or submits. If the combatant is clearly unable to continue, or his or her life is in danger, I will step in and call the fight. Now before we begin, does anyone have any questions or would like to drop out of the competition now?"

All the combatants looked at each other, looked for the coward, the chicken-wuss, the weakling that was going to back out at the last minute. Only one began to move, Kabuto; his hand slowly began to rise until his Jonin sensei looked up and narrowed his eyes at the teen. Kabuto quickly scratched the back of his head with his raised hand and smiled sheepishly. Hayate looked at the white-haired teen suspiciously for a moment, coughed, and continued. "Anko, if you'd please."

The scary Forest of Death proctor stepped forward, reached into her trench coat, and pulled out a small electric remote. With the push of a button, the wall on the far side of the arena split and opened to reveal an enormous television screen. On the screen were the Ninja ID photos of each combatant left in the Chunin Exams with a small emblem on the bottom right side of their picture displaying which Hidden Village they hail from.

"OK, maggots, here's how this is gonna work," Anko smiled like a predator eyeing its prey. "You've all been thrown into a random generator to decide the preliminary matchups. When you're photo pops up on the screen, it's time to let the blood flow and the good times roll!" Anko shouted with glee.

The gathered Genin gave a collective shudder of fear while the Hokage and gathered Leaf Jonin rolled their eyes and sighed at Anko's behavior.

Anko stopped her giggling long enough to activate the randomizer. Two boxes appeared on the screen and participants' photos flashed through the boxes at high speed until it finally stopped on two faces: Sasuke Uchiha and Kin Tsuichi.

"The first two fighters will remain here. Everyone else must watch from the catwalks. Interference in any match, including coaching from any teammate or sensei, will result in all parties being disqualified from the competition."

The competitors and instructors nodded, though Kakashi took a split second to look Sasuke in the eye and motion to his neck. A quick reminder that if Sasuke used his chakra and/or activated the Cursed Seal, Kakashi will step in and stop the match, consequences be damned.

_As __if __I__'__ll __need __any __chakra __to __beat __this __peasant __girl,_Sasuke scoffed.

As Naruto filed out of the ring area and toward the catwalks with the other combatants, he narrowed his eyes at his teammate, hoping Sasuke would remember his "time out" from earlier. He also cast his gaze at Kin. Naruto remembered the girl from the Forest of Death and frowned when he saw her condition. The brunette was still dressed in the same dirty fatigues she wore in the Forest and was still sporting a large bruise on her face and head from her own teammate's attack. Naruto looked at her Sound teammates; both were just as dirty, leading Naruto to assume they didn't have or lost their change of clothing; the spiky haired one had one arm in a sling from the beating he took from Sasuke; but the rest of their injuries were mended and they appeared to be in overall good health. Kin looked like she had not slept in days and was suffering from mild chakra exhaustion.

_Either __she __just __walked __into __the __tower __ten __minutes __ago, __or __she __got __the __worst __medical __treatment __I__'__ve __ever __seen, _Naruto thought. But before he could get anyone in authority's attention, Hayate raised his hand and shouted: "BEGIN!"

Sasuke didn't waste any time and rushed toward Kin, a flying kick similar to Rock Lee's Dynamic Entry aimed at her head. Kin ducked beneath Sasuke's foot and countered with a back fist of her own. Sasuke landed and blocked at the last second, his movements slow and casual. He held onto Kin's wrist and sneered at her.

"It's a real shame you were already out cold in the Forest earlier; you would've been a lot of fun," he whispered just loudly enough for her to hear. Kin snarled back at Sasuke and landed a kick to his stomach. The kick lacked the power to do any real damage, but managed to separate the two enough for Kin to hurl a trio of senbon needles at the boy.

Sasuke dodged them, cutting it closer than usual. _Those__ little __needles __are __much__ harder __to __dodge __without __using __my __Sharingan, _he realized. _I__'__m__ almost __glad __I __had __that __experience __back __in __Wave __with __that __Haku __girl, __otherwise,__I__ may __be __a __pin__cushion__ again __by __now._He reached into his pouch and hurled four shuriken at the Sound girl. Kin laughed at him and hurled a matching set of senbon. The senbon intercepted the shuriken, slipping into the shuriken's center holes and pinning them to the wall. Sasuke glowered at her and rushed to engage in taijutsu again, but Kin leapt backward and darted away.

"What's the matter, afraid to fight a true elite face-to-face?" Sasuke taunted and continued to rush at Kin.

"Don't be an ass. You would keep your distance too if you spent the last two days being ignored by medics and sleeping on a broken mattress," Kin spat back and hurled more senbons at Sasuke. "Not all of us got four course meals, full healing, and comfortable beds like you, teme!"

_That __confirms __those __suspicions,_ thought Naruto from the catwalk. _Someone__ definitely __rigged t__hese __exams__ to __make __it __easy __on __the __teme. __Now__ the __only __real __question __is __who?_

"A weakling like you doesn't deserve equal treatment as a true noble and elite ninja like me," Sasuke sneered as he channeled chakra into his legs. With a mighty leap, Sasuke flew over the senbon and Kin and landed behind her. In the time it took for Kin to turn, Sasuke had already slammed his right hand into her stomach and followed up with a straight kick to the girl's ribs.

Kin skid backwards and leapt away again, clutching her ribs. A small trickle of blood dripped from her mouth. _That __bastard __broke __some __of __my __ribs. __He__'__s__ an __arrogant __sonofabitch, __but __he__'__s __still __stronger __than __most __of __the __others; __he __hasn__'__t__ even __used __his __Cursed __Seal __yet!_

Kin reached into her pack and hurled more senbon at Sasuke. Sasuke dodged again, never noticing the chakra strings tied to the needles, or the tiny bells that dangled along them. Kin gave the strings a sharp tug and Sasuke collapsed, clutching his ears.

"After all that bravado and bullshit, you're just as pathetic as that pink-haired banshee you have as a teammate," Kin smirked as she pulled on the chakra strings again. "I can't believe this; does no one in the Hidden Leaf have any sensory training or defense? I would've thought the banshee would've at least shared how incredibly painful my attacks can be."

Sasuke struggled to stand up, his eyes filled with rage, but each time Kin pulled the strings, Sasuke fell back to his knees and clawed at his ears.

"You should be happy I went easy on you, pinky," Kin shouted up towards Sakura. "I'm not going to be so kind to your prick of a boyfriend." Kin wrapped the chakra strings together and began flicking her forefinger against it. The violent vibrations increased her attacks tenfold and Sasuke roared in pain. He managed to open his eyes slightly and saw five copies of Kin, each holding their own chakra strings, each making their own pain-filled symphony. The chaotic noise was maddening; it took all of Sasuke's willpower to find his kunai pouch and slip a blade into his hand.

"Give up already!" Kin shouted over the dim. "I don't want to be lynched for killing the Leaf's precious last Uchiha!"

Sasuke smiled despite the pain he was in. "You said it yourself; I'm the last Uchiha. And all Uchiha have something that makes us far superior to everyone else!"

Sasuke's eyes snapped open, his Sharingan active and whirling at high speeds. "I can see through you're Genjutsu," Sasuke smirked and threw his kunai.

Kin's eyes flashed wide as the kunai sped right at her. _How__ could __he __tell __which __was __the __real __me?_ Kin ducked to the left, avoiding the kunai, but never saw the second kunai hidden in the shadow of the first. The kunai sank deep into her shoulder. Kin let out a high pitched scream and dropped her chakra strings.

"Without your bells and strings, you're jutsu is worthless," Sasuke stood up and walked towards Kin; the look on his face was eerily similar to a cat stalking an injured mouse. "But my jutsu requires none of your weak tools to beat you," he finished and began to flash through handseals.

"Kakashi-sensei, I thought you told Sasuke not to use any jutsu, or even his Sharingan?" Sakura practically yelled at Kakashi. The one-eyed Jonin sighed, looked up from his Icha Icha book, and shrugged.

"I did, but it looks like he's still in control," Kakashi said. "He won't hurt himself; I don't think that seal on his neck will activate just using one jutsu. And I wouldn't worry about the Sharingan; as an Uchiha, the chakra draw to his eyes is natural, unlike mine, and the chakra drain is practically nothing."

Naruto looked at his teacher and teammate with disgust written on his face. Kakashi's apathy was downright criminal, not to mention his tardiness and perverted habits made him hardly a suitable role model or teacher for young kids. Naruto's new memories had shown him what true teachers were. What he wouldn't give for Steve Rogers' or Nick Fury's tutelage; even the Taskmaster would be a better teacher than Kakashi and he was a super villain!

His right hand dropped to his side, close to where Mjolnir hung from his belt, just in case Sasuke's Cursed Seal activated again.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke shouted and a massive orange and red fireball leapt from his mouth towards Kin. The ball was huge and hot; everyone in the arena could feel the heat as it sped through the air.

Kin panicked. Sweat poured from the heat and mixed with the icy feeling of shock coming from her kunai wound. She tried to throw her body out of the way, but the blood loss and wound slowed her down. The fireball slammed into her wounded arm, instantly igniting her clothes and hair. She rolled around on the ground, trying to put the flames out.

Hayate quickly intervened. He appeared at Kin's side and doused the flames with a low level water jutsu. Smoke and steam rose off Kin's body as medics rushed to the scene.

"Kin Tsuchi is unable to continue. Winner: Sasuke Uchiha," Hayate announced. Up on the screen, Kin's portrait darkened while the word "WINNER" appeared above Sasuke's.

Instead of celebrating, Sasuke fell to one knee, clutching his neck. His body shuddered in pain as he tried to catch his breath and hold off the Cursed Seal transformation.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura screamed. Kakashi sighed for a second time, looked up from his book, and finally put it away.

"I guess that's my cue," he said casually and leapt down to the arena floor. "C'mon, Sasuke. Let's get that taken care of." He reached out, touched Sasuke's good shoulder, and they both disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

"Sasuke-teme should never have been allowed to fight," Naruto growled softly. "I can't believe Kakashi-sensei let him."

"He's knows what's best, baka, not you!" Sakura yelled and tried to slam her fist into the top of Naruto's head like she always did. Unfortunately, Sakura wasn't used to Naruto's change of height and missed the top of his head, clipping his jaw instead. The blow didn't faze Naruto in the slightest, but Sakura felt like she had just broken her hand.

"That is the last time you will ever do that to me," Naruto said to her without looking at her. Sakura stepped away in terror at the coldness in Naruto's voice and stared up at the random photos flashing across the screen. The photos finally stopped and Hayate announced the next match up.

"Will Choji Akimichi and Misumi Tsurugi please report to the ring?"

Misumi hurdled over the balcony and let himself drop into the ring. Choji calmly finished his potato chips and used the stairs.

"Let's go already!" Misumi shouted impatiently. "I want to get this over with."

"One should never rush while eating good food," Choji replied with a sage-like air of wisdom that only an Akimichi talking about eating could have. He finally finished the chips, turned the bag upside down to get the last few crumbs and seasoning, and tossed the empty bag away. "Now then, let's get this thing started!"

"Begin!" Hayate shouted and Misumi dashed across the ring at a much higher speed than anyone expected. When he closed half the distance to Choji, Misumi held his arms out in front of him and, with a pulse of chakra, shot his hands towards Choji. Choji paled in surprise when Misumi's arms elongated and stretched unbelievable lengths; Choji didn't even realize that they had wrapped completely around his chest and arms until it was too late.

Already trapped, Choji tried to struggle as the rest of Misumi caught up to his arms. Misumi's legs stretched just like his arms and wrapped around Choji's waist and legs like fleshy anchors. Misumi even stretched and wrapped his own neck around Choji's, choking him.

_That__'__s __the __same __technique __Orochimaru __used __to __bite __Sasuke-kun__ in__ the__ Forest __of __Death!_ Sakura realized. She was about to turn to Naruto and saw something, but the fading pain in her hand stopped her.

**Let ****the ****baka ****figure ****it ****out ****for ****himself,** her inner self said. **Course**** that****'****ll ****probably**** never ****happen, ****so ****we****'****ll ****make**** Naruto ****crawl ****back ****to ****us ****on ****his ****hands ****and ****knees ****and ****beg ****us ****to ****let ****him ****know ****what****'****s ****going ****on! ****CHA!**

Unfortunately for Sakura's plans, Naruto was too busy comparing Misumi's Soft Body technique to Thor's memories of the elastic explorer, Mister Fantastic.

Meanwhile, Misumi continued to tighten his hold on Choji like a python crushing its prey. "Give up now," he said. "There's no way anyone can escape. If you don't tap out now, I'll squeeze you until your body looks like an old tube of toothpaste."

Despite the great pain and lack of oxygen, Choji grinned and replied: "Not a chance. Body Expansion Jutsu!"

Choji's chakra spiked and his entire body started to grow upwards and outwards. Misumi grit his teeth and continued to squeeze, hoping that the suffocating pressure combined with the Akimichi's own jutsu would choke the boy out.

Choji's face began to turn red as he grew even larger. Misumi's teammate, Yoroi, let out a loud chuckle and pointed.

"Misumi's got him now; that fool's own technique made it even easier for Misumi to squeeze. You're buddy is gonna pass out any second now, Nara."

Shikamaru, who had been watching the match with interest instead of daydreaming for once, simply shook his head and said, "I hope your friend doesn't rip easily."

A sudden scream tore through the air and snapped everyone's attention back to the fight. Misumi was screaming in pain as Choji continued to grow and expand more and more. The boy was already nearly half the size of the Ram Seal statue and was still growing!

_He__'__s__ actually __getting __too __big! _Misumi screamed inside his own mind. _If __I__ hold __on __for __much __longer, __he__'__s __going __to __tear __me __in __half!_

Misumi threw everything he had into one last squeeze, but Choji just kept growing. Finally, Misumi's grip on Choji faltered for just a single instant, but even that was enough. With the sound of a rubber band being snapped, Misumi shot off of Choji's body like a taunt rubber band. He crashed into the Ram Seal Statue and dangled; his limbs limp and stretched to their limits, but still intact, hanging off the side of the statue.

"Misumi Tsurugi is unable to continue. The winner is Choji Akimichi!" Hayate announced as an entire squad of medics began pulling Misumi off the statue and coiling up his ridiculously long limbs and neck. The rest of the Konoha Rookies cheered as Choji marched up the catwalk stairs. He stopped in front of Shikamaru and held out a hand. Shikamaru rolled his eyes, reached into his shuriken pouch, and handed Choji a bag of Triple Jalapeño-Infused Barbeque-flavored potato chips. Choji took the bag with great relish and carefully opened it, trying to be very delicate so not to break any of the chips. Everyone looked at Shikamaru for an explanation, but the Nara genius just shrugged and said it was motivation.

Back on the screen, the next pair of combatants' photos were displayed.

"Will Temari Sabaku and Rock Lee please come down for the next match?" Hayate called out. Temari smiled as she walked confidently down the catwalk stairs. Lee bounced up and down excitedly as he politely let the lady walk down the stairs first. As soon as Temari stepped off the stairs, Lee shot down to the arena and immediately began to do warm-up stretches. Temari looked away from Lee's tight and horribly colored outfit as he stretched.

"Would you stop that?" she asked, turning slightly green herself. "I am seeing way too much through that outfit while you're doing, well, whatever it is you're doing."

"But Guy-sensei always says it is important to warm-up properly before a fight," Lee replied happily. "It would be very unyouthful of me and disrespectful to you if I were to perform less than my very best in our match because of a pulled muscle. I cannot be disrespectful to such a lovely desert flower as you. If I am, I will do one hundred laps around Konoha only on my hands. If I cannot do that, I will do ten thousand pushups with only my thumbs. If I cannot do that, I will run to Suna and back in only two days. If I cannot do that…"

"You might as well get started!" Tenten shouted down from the catwalks. "When Lee gets like this, he can go on for hours!"

Hayate looked at Temari who just shrugged and readied her fan. Hayate looked back at Lee (who was still speaking a mile a minute about eating ten handfuls of chili peppers if he couldn't climb the Hokage Monument with only his teeth), shrugged, coughed, and said: "BEGIN!"

Temari unfolded her fan one third of the way in one motion, reveling a single purple orb, and swung with all her might. "Wind Scythe Jutsu!"

Lee, so distracted by his choices of workouts, never saw the wave of wind until it was already upon him. The wind blew him backwards and he tumbled across the ground.

"That'll teach you to get distracted in a fight," Temari said as she folded her fan. "I expected more from a Leaf ninja," she told Hayate and began to walk back towards the catwalk.

"I am sorry; have we started already?" Lee asked as he picked himself up. He was covered in dust, but looked no worse for wear after Temari's attack.

"Yep," Hayate nodded. "Next time pay more attention."

"I will, referee-san. If I do not, I will…"

"QUIT IT!" shouted Temari, her right eye twitching angrily. She unfolded a third of her fan again and swung at Lee. But this time, Lee knew it was coming and darted out of the way. He ran at Temari, looking to engage her in taijutsu, but Temari wasn't about to give away any distance. With speed equal to Lee's, she darted away, swinging her fan to keep Lee at a distance. Lee tried to slow her down by throwing a duo of kunai at her, but Temari casually blew them away with her fan.

"You're going to have to do better than that," she called to Lee. "I am the mistress of wind; nothing can touch me and nothing is faster than the wind!" She unfolded her fan again, revealing a second purple moon. "When you see all three moons, it's all over."

"I see," smiled Lee. "Then to defeat you I must become faster than the very wind you tame."

"That's impossible," Temari smirked as Lee bent down and rolled down his orange leg warmers. A row of weights was tied to each leg beneath the orange cloth. Temari laughed as he began to remove them.

"You think taking off a few pounds of weight will do anything? You can't be serio…"

Temari was cut off as Lee dropped the weights, creating two massive craters in the arena floor. Temari quickly blew away the clouds of dust that sprang up from the craters and saw Lee standing still in front of her.

_Only __a __fool __would__'__ve__ remained __still __in __all __that __cover,_ Temari thought, her keen mind already laying out new strategies to compensate for Lee's weight removal. She cautiously threw a kunai at Lee and smirked when the blade went right through his chest. But the image of Lee didn't pop in a burst of smoke or disappear like a normal clone would.

_That__ wasn__'__t __a__ clone! _Temari realized. _That __was __an __after image;__ he__'__s actually __moving__ that __fast!_

Lee reappeared on the far side of the arena, one hand behind his back and the other raised palm up towards Temari.

"Now we will see who is faster: your wind or me youthfulness," exclaimed Lee.

Temari opened her fan all the way and took a step back towards the wall. "Wind Scythe Jutsu!" she yelled and blew a massive gust of wind across the arena. Even up in the catwalks, the other contestants could feel the powerful winds. But Lee darted to the side and ran towards Temari.

"Wind Scythe Jutsu! Wind Scythe Jutsu!" Temari shouted over and over again, hurling waves of wind at Lee, but each time, Lee would vanish and reappear even closer than before.

_This __is__ impossible!__ How__ can__ he __be __this __fast? _Temari worried as Lee closed in on her. Desperate and frustrated, she swung her fan at the green-clad boy in a last ditch attempt to blow him back or bash him with the metal outside of her fan.

Lee leapt over her swing and flipped in the air. "Leaf Hurricane!" Lee shouted and kicked Temari across the face and stomach. The blows sent the Suna kunoichi spinning through the air, her fan fell to the ground, and, because of her proximity to the wall, Temari smashed and crumbled against it.

Lee appeared at her side immediately with his the knife edge of his hand reared back to strike. Temari slowly opened one eye and stared up at Lee, her stare defiant and seeking mercy at the same time.

"I—I'm done," Temari whispered, ashamed. "He's too fast."

Hayate immediately raised his hand and announced Lee the winner. Lee smiled his brightest smile, stood, and held out his hand to Temari.

"I am sorry for kicking you so hard," Lee said. "Your wind ninjutsu is very powerful. You are a most youthful opponent and I hope we may have the honor of fighting each other again someday."

Temari looked at the strange boy, doing her best to keep from staring at his incredibly bushy eyebrows. _He__is__without__a__doubt__the__strangest__and__politest__boy__I__'__ve__ever__met,_ Temari thought and cautiously took Lee's hand. Lee helped her up to her feet and walked beside her until the medical ninja arrived. They took Temari to be examined while Lee retrieved his weights. He carefully rewrapped them to his legs before proudly returning to the catwalk.

"Great job Lee," his teammate Tenten smiled. "I don't think I could've beat her; her wind would've blown my weapons all over the place."

"He got lucky," said Neji, Lee's other teammate. "Fate decreed he'd face an opponent with no close-range abilities. He would have lost against anyone with real skill."

Tenten shot Neji a nasty look, but Lee simply kept smiling as his sensei, Might Guy, congratulated him with a slightly disturbing display of pride and youthfulness. Meanwhile, the screen flashed new photos across the screen.

_Sakura Haruno vs Ino Yamanaka_

Sakura pumped her fist and quickly shoved her way toward the stairs. She hurried down the steps and waited eagerly for Ino.

_**Cha, now everyone will see that I'm better than Ino-pig. It's just too bad Kakashi-sensei had to take Sasuke-kun away and now he can't see how superior I am to Ino-pig!**_

Ino, on the other hand, took her time and walked down the steps, her eyes never leaving Sakura's.

"Let's go already, Ino-pig! What's taking so long?" Sakura yelled from the arena floor. Ino rolled her eyes at the pinkette and finished walking down the stairs.

"What's your rush, Forehead? Do you have a hot date at the kennels later?" Ino spat back with a cocky grin.

"As exciting as your back and forth banter is, do you think we could get started?" interrupted Hayate before Sakura could snap at Ino. Both girls glared at the referee, nodded, and then glared back at each other.

_**Ino-pig **__**is **__**going **__**down! **_Sakura thought.

_I __have __to __end __this __quickly __without__ hurting __Sakura,_ thought Ino, thinking back to their childhood adventures. _She __may__be __a __bit __delusional__ and __hotheaded, __but __she__was __my __best__ friend. __I __miss __her; __maybe __this __fight __is __what __we __need __to __move __past __this __pettiness._

"FIGHT!" shouted Hayate and Sakura immediately charged at Ino. She drew a kunai out of her pack and crossed her fingers into the ram seal. "Clone Jutsu," she whispered and a trio of Sakuras appeared running beside her. The clones' paths crossed over and intertwined with the originals, hoping to throw Ino off as to who was real and who was just an illusion.

"You're gonna have to do better than that!" Ino laughed. She drew three shurikens from her pouch and hurled them at Sakura with a flick of her wrist. The shuriken each hit a clone, dispelling them and leaving Sakura without any cover.

_**Damn it! I knew you should've used more than just three clones! How are we going to impress Sasuke-kun with only three clones?**_

_Will __you __shut __up?_ Sakura argued with herself. _Unless __you__'__re__ planning __on __helping __out, __just __butt __out __and __let __me__ kick __Ino-pig__'__s __fake __blonde __ass __all __over __the __place!_

_**Dream on, pinky. You better step it up a notch if you think you're going to win like this. You aren't even paying attention to your opponent right now.**_

_Oh shi…_

Sakura snapped out of her internal argument just in time to feel Ino's fist collide with her jaw. The blow spun Sakura around and dumped her onto her backside.

_What __the__ hell __is __wrong __with __Sakura?_ Ino wondered. _I __barely __put __anything__ into __that __punch__ and __it __still __nearly __knocked __her __out.__ Why__ the __hell __was __she __just __standing __there__ like__ that?_

"Just give up Sakura. We both know you aren't ready for the Chunin Exams. Please give up before I hurt you," Ino said genuinely.

"Shut up, Ino-pig! You just want me to quit so you look better for Sasuke-kun!"

A frightened look flashed through Ino's eyes at the Uchiha's name, followed by a terrible glare. "Sasuke? Why the hell would I want anything to do with that asshole after what he did in the Forest?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Sakura as she stood up. "I know you're only taking the Exams so that you can try to undercut me and be with Sasuke-kun!"

Ino took a step backward, her hands tightened into fists. "You…you don't remember what he did in the Forest, do you? Or are you just as sick and twisted as he is?"

"Don't say that about my Sasuke-kun!"

Ino narrowed her eyes at Sakura. "I really didn't want to do this to you Sakura, but you need a wake-up call. Mind Transfer Jutsu!"

Sakura let out a scream as Ino's consciousness invaded hers and flooded the pinkette's mind with images from the Forest of Death.

"_Hello girls," Sasuke grinned as he approached. "You don't know how glad I am that you're both here. All this excitement has really given me a big appetite."_

"_Sasuke-kun, what happened to you?" asked Ino._

"_There's no need to be worried, Ino; no need to fear my new power. I finally have the way to avenge my clan and move on. Don't you want to help me revive my clan?" Sasuke asked and reached out to touch Ino. She shrunk away from his touch and his fingers grazed her broken arm._

"_Sasuke, my arm!" Ino wailed and tried to stumble backwards, but Sasuke was too fast. He lashed out and grabbed her by the front of her shirt. He pulled her close to him, ignoring her cries of pain and fear._

"_What's the matter, Ino? I thought you'd love to be this close to me. Isn't that what you and Sakura always fought about?"_

_Ino cringed and turned her head away from Sasuke's; his breath was foul and the dark marks continued to spread across his face._

"_Sakura…" Ino whispered a plea for help. Sakura struggled to get up, but fell back down after only a few inches._

"_Don't worry about Sakura. I'll have her right after you," Sasuke leered. "Like I said, all that fighting left me with a big appetite." He tightened his grip on Ino's shirt and pulled, ripping the top in two and reveling Ino's pale, bra-clad chest. Her short skirt quickly followed. Sasuke's lust-filled eyes widened in their appreciation of Ino's assets and his hand reached toward her again._

"_Please…someone…" Ino whispered and closed her eyes tight. She felt Sasuke's fingertips on her bra, felt the pit in her stomach deepen and repulsion crawl up her spine…_

"_**GET **__**OUT **__**OF **__**OUR **__**HEAD!**__**" **_Inner Sakura roared and canceled out Ino's jutsu. Ino's conscious flew back into her own body, actually knocking her backwards from the force of her expulsion.

_How the hell did Sakura kick me out like that? It was almost like there was someone else already in her mind…_

Meanwhile, Sakura had fallen to her knees, clutching her large forehead. "I don't believe it…" she whispered.

"I'm sorry Sakura, but you needed to see what happened," Ino replied. She felt horrible for exposing Sakura to the truth and sick to her stomach.

"I can't believe you'd make up such horrible, disgusting lies!" Sakura roared. "I could understand Naruto making things up about Sasuke-kun; the idiot has always been jealous of Sasuke's skills and handsomeness. But you're supposed to love Sasuke-kun!"

"What?" shouted Ino.

"I bet you made all that up just to drive me away so you can have Sasuke-kun all to yourself!" Sakura continued. "Well, it's not gonna happen, Ino-pig!"

With a snarl, Sakura charged at Ino and smashed her fist into Ino's cheek. The blow knocked Ino down and Sakura followed up with a brutal kick to Ino's midsection. Ino skipped off the ground and bounced twice before coming to rest a few feet away.

"You better call it," Sakura told the referee. "She's done."

_**CHA! We totally showed her that we're the only ones that deserve to be with Sasuke-kun!**_

Hayate started to walk towards Ino to check on her, but Ino suddenly burst into a cloud of smoke. A broken tree branch, taken from the Forest of Death, appeared on the ground in her place.

_A__ substitution? _realized Sakura as she began to search for Ino. There was no sign of her, though the smoke from the substitution hid a small portion of the arena still.

_**We should have seen that coming!**_

_Don__'__t__ argue __with __me, __just __help __me __look!_Sakura argued. She drew a kunai and walked toward the cloud of dissipating smoke. She squinted and just barely made out the blurry shape of a ponytail.

"Gottcha!" Sakura shouted and threw her kunai. There was a clang of metal on metal as Ino intercepted the kunai by throwing one of her own.

"I wanted to take it easy on you Sakura because we used to be friends," Ino said as she stepped fully out of what was left of the smoke cloud, "but your blindness and thickheaded denial has gone too far!"

"Cha! You're the one that's lying and trying to make me look bad, Ino-pig!" Sakura growled and threw a wild haymaker at Ino. Ino sighed and slipped under it with a speed that dwarfed anything Sakura was remotely capable of. She reached out and grabbed the back of Sakura's head with both hands. Ino drove her left knee into Sakura's stomach, pulled down on Sakura's head, and smashed her right knee into Sakura's nose. The nose broke with a sickening crunch and spurt of blood.

Sakura let out a gurgling scream and tried to pry Ino's hands off her head. Ino let go with her left hand, keeping a grip on the back of Sakura's neck with her right, and grabbed onto Sakura's flailing right wrist. Jumping into the air, Ino kicked her right leg into Sakura's stomach and flung her left leg over Sakura's outstretched arm and across her neck. Both girls fell to the ground, Sakura's arm stretched out from her shoulder and her body pinned down by Ino's legs. Ino squeezed her knees together and arched her hips upright, hyper-extending Sakura's arm and threatening to break it. Sakura screamed in pain and frantically slammed her free hand on the floor, tapping out.

Hayate appeared above Ino and quickly relaxed Ino's hold before she broke Sakura's arm. Ino rolled away and looked down at Sakura in disgust.

"We're through, Sakura," she said. "Don't ever talk to me or come near me, don't even look at me until you come to your senses. And you can have Sasuke if you're sick enough to have him."

Sakura looked up at Ino, bleeding and crying, wondering why Ino had hurt her like that before the medics took her away. Ino climbed back up to the catwalks and, after being congratulated by her teammates and checked out by a medic, approached Naruto.

"I don't know if I said it the other day, I was pretty out of it, but thank you for rescuing us. Well, rescuing me in particular. If you ever need anything…"

"You're welcome," Naruto smiled gently. "I'm glad you're ok and off the Sasuke-teme bandwagon."

"Ha! Sakura can keep that sick sonofabitch. Besides, us blondes ought to stick together," she said with a wink and walked away. Naruto stared, slightly bewildered, and could've sworn he saw the girl's hips sway from side-to-side a little more than usual. He was so befuddled by Ino's actions that he missed the announcement for the next match up.

By the time Naruto caught on, the match between Kiba and Dosu was already over. The Sound Ninja's bracer was particularly brutal to the Inuzuka's enhanced senses. One swipe and Kiba was down for the count, literally howling in pain.

The next two matches went equally quickly. First, Shikamaru easily trapped Zaku in his Shadow Possession Jutsu and forced Zaku to point his own hand beneath his chin. Shikamaru threatened to channel chakra through the wind pathway in the hand and blow Zaku's head clean off if he didn't surrender. Zaku tried to call Shikamaru's bluff, but when he felt the familiar feeling of wind building within his arm, Zaku quickly surrendered.

Gaara of the Desert paired off against Yoroi Akado. Gaara stood stone still in the center of the ring while Yoroi boasted about his clan's special bloodline. With a chakra-enhanced burst of speed, Yoroi sprinted at Gaara with his hands outstretched. Before Yoroi could reach Gaara and grab hold of him to drain his chakra, five tendrils of sand shot up from the floor at Gaara's feet and wrapped around Yoroi's limbs and neck.

"You're pathetic," Gaara said without remorse. "Sand coffin." The sand engulfed Yoroi and held him up in the air.

Garra raised an open hand and pointed it at the human shaped cast of sand. "Sand Burial," he said and closed his fist. There was a muffled scream and squelch inside the sand cast as it collapsed into a hand-sized ball. Gaara left Yoroi's remains on the arena floor and recalled his sand as he walked back up to the catwalk. Everyone, Naruto included, gave him a wide berth.

_There__'__s __something __definitely __wrong __with __that __guy,_Naruto thought as Gaara walked past. _He__'__s__ a__ right __monster,__a __troll __or__ ogre __with __sand._With his new senses, Naruto could easily make out the smell of old blood among the sand of Gaara's gourd. A second whiff smelt of dried out tanuki, but Naruto shrugged it off as pictures began streaking across the board once again.

The short break was interrupted as the board began its randomizing for the next match. Tenten and Kankuro quickly made their way to the arena.

"This is gonna be a piece of cake," Kankuro laughed. "This chick doesn't stand a chance."

"Chick?" Tenten repeated with a raised eyebrow. "Oh, I am so going to make this hurt. Start the match."

"But the medics haven't cleared the area yet," Hayate protested.

"I SAID START IT!" Tenten roared, doing her best impression of Iruka's famous Demon Head jutsu. Hayate jumped back embarrassed, but started the match.

Tenten let out a fearsome roar as she hurled a brace of kunai at Kankuro. The Suna ninja quickly ducked and returned fire with a trio of shuriken. Tenten reached into her leg pouch and pulled out a thick scroll. She held the scroll out in front of her and used it to bat away Kankuro's shuriken.

"Rising Dragon!" she yelled and unfurled the scroll into the air. A handseal later and a swarm of weapons of all shapes and sizes descended upon Kankuro.

"You gotta be kidding me!" he shouted and tried to dodge, but there were simply too many. The dozens of kunai and shuriken and knives and spiked maces and spears tore through Kankuro's flesh like paper. Kankuro somehow remained standing, despite the dozens of terrible wounds scattered across his torso and limbs.

"That's what you get for thinking that a kunoichi is going to be an easy win," Tenten said triumphantly. She turned to walk away, but her attention was captured by a sudden, spastic grinding sound from Kankuro. "What the hell is that?" Tenten wondered out loud. She turned back and peered at the broken, hole-ridden body, just noticing for the first time that there was no blood coming out of any of the wounds.

A metal arm shot out of Kankuro's chest and a set of spindly, metal fingers grasped for Tenten's throat. Tenten slipped out of the way at the last second and the metal fingers closed around a piece of her shirt, tearing it, instead of her throat.

"What the hell is that thing?" Tenten shouted as the metal arm retracted back into Kankuro's body. Sinister laughter came from the bundle of bandages strapped to Kankuro's back.

"I see you've met Crow," the voice said. "Don't be shy; let me introduce you to him properly." Kankuro burst out of the bundle of bandages while a humanoid looking puppet tore off its "Kankuro" disguise. The puppet was a three-eyed, four-armed monster covered with a wild mop of brown hair and a tattered coverall.

Kankuro stood behind his puppet, fingers outstretched. Whenever he moved a digit, even the slightest twitch, the Crow puppet responded instantly.

_It's like they're connected to each other. Think, Tenten, think. Puppets need strings to move; all you have to do is cut the strings and then it'll be useless._

But Tenten couldn't see the strings manipulating the puppet; as far as she could tell, there was no visible connection between Kankuro and his puppet.

"You can look all day long, girlie; but unless you got one of those fancy Konoha bloodlines, you're never going to see anything," Kankuro boasted. "Senbon cannon!" The puppet's mouth yawned open and a storm of senbon needles spat at Tenten.

With a sailor-like curse, Tenten rolled out of the way, only to have to leap away from a torrent of kunai and shuriken fired from slots in the puppet's hands. Tenten was just a hair too slow and one of the shuriken managed to scratch her. She hissed in pain and clutched at the small wound.

"You might as well surrender now," Kankuro said. "Every one of Crow's weapons is coated in a Nightbane compound. Nightbane only grows in the northern wastes of Suna and when introduced into the body, causes its victims to experience increasingly horrible visions and hallucinations until they eventually drive the mind into such a frenzy that it shuts down to stop the terrors."

Tenten started at her scratched arm and then back at Kankuro. "You bastard; how could you use such a thing on your weapons?"

"We're ninja, princess; by definition we don't play by the rules. Now, I'd surrender if I were you. That is, if you want the antidote. Those visions should be starting any second now," Kankuro grinned and held up a tiny vial of clear liquid.

Tenten grit her teeth and glared at Kankuro. Already her vision was fading in and out and swirling out of control. Terrible bright flashes of colored light exploded in her peripheral vision, nonsensical shapes that slowly became more distinct. Tenten tried to wipe her eyes clear, but the shapes and colors only increased with each passing second. The shapes whirled and whorled into hideous monsters shaped and dressed like her friends, but transformed into demons and succubi and creatures with vile protuberances, all reaching out for her.

"Leave me alone!" she screamed and stumbled backwards. She cornered herself, her back to a wall, and swung a kunai in each hand at the invisible monsters.

"Just give up already," Kankuro shouted across the arena. "I'll give you the antidote and it will all go away."

"Just shut up and leave me alone!" Tenten screamed again and opened her bloodshot eyes. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a single small scroll. Biting her thumb for a drop of blood, Tenten unsealed the scroll, transforming it into a massive roll twice as large as she was!

With a deep breath, Tenten crossed her fingers into the ram seal and shouted: "Scroll Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Another massive scroll burst into existence beside the original.

_No, __there__'__s __no __way__…__Guy__ wouldn__'__t__ be__ foolish __enough__ to __teach __her __a __forbidden __jutsu __like__Shadow__ cloning!_thought the Hokage.

_When __did __you __learn __such __a __powerful __jutsu?_wondered Guy. _Your__ flames__ of __youth __are __truly __bright, __Tenten!_

_Damn,__guess__I__'__m__not__the__only__one__playing__with__Shadow__Clones__anymore,_ grinned Naruto.

Tenten wavered as she struggled to stand; using the Scroll Shadow Clone Jutsu had left her nearly completely drained of chakra. She rapidly shook her hand and squeezed her eyes closed as a vision of her mother, killed in the Nine-Tailed Fox attack, lurched toward her. The vision raised a decaying hand and groped for Tenten's throat.

With a high pitched scream, Tenten reached out and pulled on the ripcords holding the scrolls closed. With a yank, the scrolls unfurled and revealed one thousand small storage seals on each scroll.

"What the hell is this?" Kankuro muttered as he looked at the twin scrolls.

"Rising Dragon: Bahamut Shuriken Bomb!" Tenten shouted. Instantly, ten shuriken burst from each of the storage seals and flew at Kankuro, over 20,000 whirling bladed weapons that covered the entire arena in a light-blocking cloud of metal!

"Oh, come on!" Kankuro complained and jumped behind Crow, hoping the puppet could block the shuriken. The shuriken slammed into the ground and walls with a _clang_ and a thick cloud of dust filled the arena.

Tenten collapsed and curled into a tight ball, the hallucinations beginning to overwhelm her. She slipped into unconsciousness, whimpering and twitching occasionally. Across the arena, the dust slowly began to clear. Kankuro was pinned spread-eagled to the floor by shuriken, his clothes and shredded and blood dripping from several wounds. The puppet, Crow, was utterly shredded; there was not a whole single piece or portion of the puppet remaining.

Hayate looked at Tenten and then back at Kankuro. "Can you get up?" he asked.

Kankuro struggled for a moment, but between his wounds and the shuriken pinning his clothes down, he couldn't budge. He let out a groan of frustration, then yelped in pain as one of his wounds stretched open, and finally gave up and laid down.

Hayate shrugged. "Neither combatant can continue. This match is a draw." He walked over to Kankuro and reached into the Suna ninja's pocket. "Thank you," Hayate said and held up the vial of antidote. Hayate tossed the vial to the approaching medical ninja that were trying to restrain the flailing Tenten. One of the medical ninja caught the vial and, after examining it quickly to verify its authenticity, administered it to Tenten. Seconds later, Tenten relaxed and her breathing returned to normal. Meanwhile, another group of medical ninja treated Kankuro's wounds while freeing him from the floor, while a cleanup crew repaired the arena.

"I can't believe she killed Crow," Kankuro whimpered and began collecting the pieces of his puppet. He wrapped the pieces up in the remains of the puppet's coverall and quietly walked back to his siblings on the catwalk. While his sister expressed her obligatory sympathies, though secretly she was glad Tenten had proven that Kunoichi are not to be messed with, the board sprang to life again.

_Naruto Uzumaki vs Kabuto Yakushi_

"Finally!" Naruto grinned and popped the kinks out of his neck. He secured Mjolnir on his belt and leapt over the railing. He plummeted like a stone to the arena floor and landed with a heavy thud, cracking the tiles around him.

Kabuto was much more reserved as he walked toward and down the stairs. He carefully locked eyes with his Jonin sensei as he walked down the stairs. The yellow-eyed Jonin shook slightly and Kabuto's eyes widened a tiny fraction.

_He__ still __wants__ me__ to__ hold __back?_ he thought. _First __he __changes __the __plan __by __having __me __continue __to __compete, __now__ he __wants__ me__ to __still __hold __back, __even __though __he __knows __my __opponent__ is__ the __Nine-tails__ jinchūriki.__ I __hope __my __chakra __scalpels __are __more __than __enough __to __advance. __My __other __abilities __will __just __blow __my __cover._

Kabuto buried his thoughts and put on a bright smile as he walked into the arena across from Naruto. "My, my. You seem to have had quite the growth spurt since the first exam, Naruto-kun. Did you awaken some forgotten bloodline or have you been holding out on us all this time?"

"You could say I'm a new man, Kabuto-_san_," Naruto replied. Both combatants nodded toward Hayate and the referee began the match.

"I'm sorry for this, Naruto, but I'll be sure not to do any permanent damage to you." Kabuto darted toward Naruto at high speed, his hands glowing blue and pulled back to strike. He stabbed his right hand at Naruto's shoulder, but Naruto sidestepped at the last moment. Kabuto followed with a slash towards Naruto's knees, but Naruto jumped high into the air and landed on the far side of the arena.

"You move well despite your increase in size," Kabuto complimented. "But you didn't move well enough," Kabuto said and pointed at Naruto's shoulder. A thin line had been cut into the fabric of Naruto's vest, right where Naruto's neck met his shoulder. Naruto looked over at the mark and shrugged.

"Next time, ye may wish to cut more flesh and less cloth," Naruto smirked, his language slipping into what he was beginning to call "Thor Speak" as he had inherited the God of Thunder's love for battle as well as his powers and memories. "Now it is my turn. Have at thee!" Naruto shouted and charged at Kabuto. Naruto swung a fist at Kabuto's head, but the teen ducked and jumped away in the nick of time.

_He__'__s__ so __fast! _Kabuto worried. _He__'__s__ probably __just __as __fast __as __I__ am __holding __back.__ That__ should __be __impossible __for __a __genin, __jinchūriki __or __not!_

Naruto interrupted Kabuto's thoughts as he charged again. Naruto crossed his fingers in a familiar ram seal and shouted "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" as he charged. There was a poof of smoke on either side of him, but when the smoke cleared, the two clones were frail-looking, weak, zombie versions of himself.

"Aw man, not again," Naruto groaned as he skidded to a halt. His clones looked at him pathetically and a snicker of laughter began somewhere in the catwalks. Kabuto began chuckling as well.

"Oh Naruto-kun, you really shouldn't try such advanced jutsu until you have better chakra control," Kabuto smiled. "Your clones look like they'd rather die than exist for another moment."

"Shut thy mouth!" Naruto yelled. "My clones would be thrashing thee right now if I was one hundred percent!"

"Sadly for you, they are not. Perhaps I should do them a favor and put them out of their misery," Kabuto grinned and hurled two kunai at the clones. Both kunai struck the clones in the forehead, dispelling them instantly. Kabuto quickly hurled two smoke grenades at Naruto's feet as well and enveloped the entire arena in thick black smoke.

Naruto coughed as the arid smoke burned his lungs and choked him. He searched and searched, but Naruto couldn't find any trace of Kabuto through the smoke.

"I heard you've been in a situation like this before," Kabuto's voice called out through the smoke. "When your team was in Wave Country, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, you are being very original, Kabuto-san," Naruto remarked. "Are you going to copy Zabuza even more by telling me the eight silent kill points on my body?"

"Haha, Zabuza only knew eight? Naruto, there are literally dozens of points on the human body that can result in your death or incapacitation. Like rupturing your thoratic aorta, fifth lumbar down on the spine. You'll bleed out in seconds. Or slicing through the subclavian nerve, disabling your entire arm from shoulder to fingertips."

Naruto felt Kabuto's cut tear into his shoulder, but when he reached up to clutch the wound, Naruto felt no blood, only a swift numbing sensation that raced down his left arm.

"Chakra scalpels are usually only used in surgery," Kabuto's voice whispered through the smoke. "But I find they are very handy at cutting apart opponents without ever breaking their skin."

Naruto tried to make a fist, but found he couldn't move his left fingers. He growled in annoyance and swung Mjolnir up over his head.

"Enough tricks!" Naruto shouted and summoned a gust of wind with a swing of his hammer. The smoke blew away and reveled Kabuto just to Naruto's right, his hands encased in blue-white chakra.

"That was quite clever, Naruto-kun," Kabuto smiled as he stepped backward.

"If you thought that was clever, you will love this," Naruto grinned and hurled his right fist at Kabuto. The punch slammed into Kabuto's chest. Kabuto felt the air rush out of his chest and felt a rib crack. Blood and spittle sprayed out of Kabuto's mouth and he fell backwards. He hit the ground hard and skidded twice before careening into the arena wall.

Everyone, not including Naruto but especially Kabuto, was shocked at how fast Naruto's blow landed. Some more experienced searched for a jutsu or weights that would have increased Naruto's speed, others just stared in shock and awe.

"Verily, that was but a minute fraction of mine power," Naruto said as he walked calmly toward the downed Kabuto. "Withdraw from the battle and live to fight again. Do not force me to continue to harm a comrade needlessly."

_This__ isn__'__t __good,_ Kabuto thought. _If __I__ continue__ to __fight __at __this __level,__that__ idiot __might __actually __beat __me. __But __if __I__ give __too__ much __away,__ Master __will __be __unpleased __and __I__'__ve __seen __what __happens __to __those __who __fail __to __please__ Master._

Kabuto shot a nervous glance toward the gathered Jonin instructors and the Hokage. His eyes met the yellow-eyed Jonin's only for a heartbeat, but the message sent between the two was clear enough.

Win the fight, but don't reveal too much.

"I should say the same thing to you, Naruto-kun," Kabuto smiled. He slowly, painfully, picked himself up onto his knees and held out his hands. Chakra formed across his palms and Kabuto pressed them onto his chest and stomach. Instantly, Kabuto's broken ribs knit and his internal bleeding ceased. He stood, looking as fresh as he had when he started the fight. "I'm afraid that you've forced my hand and that I can no longer hold back against you. Please don't take this thrashing personally."

Naruto smiled and raised Mjolnir in response. Kabuto drew a kunai from his pouch and disappeared. A second later he appeared above Naruto and tried to bury the kunai in Naruto's neck. Naruto whirled and blocked with his hammer at the last second, but Kabuto was gone before he could counterattack. Naruto braced himself, waiting for the next attack to come.

"Too slow," Kabuto whispered in Naruto's ear just before he lashed out with a vicious kick to the small of Naruto's back. The kick sent Naruto flying across the arena and into the far wall, right beside the mark Kabuto made earlier, and buried him in a small pile of rubble.

"You may want to get a medic down here right away," Kabuto told the referee. "His spine should be shattered between the fifth and sixth vertebrae."

Hayate teleported to Naruto's side, looked down at the prostrate boy, and saw Naruto moving beneath the rubble. He stepped back and crossed his arms over his chest. "Fights will go on as long as they have to. This match will continue."

Kabuto smiled politely at the referee. "But I do not wish to cause even more damage to a fellow Leaf ninja."

"Then quit," Hayate answered sternly. "If you don't have what it takes to finish the job, you aren't ready for Chunin."

Kabuto bristled at the referee's words, but did his best to control his emotions. _That __kick __should__'__ve __snapped __every __bone __in __his __spine!__ How __could __he __have __survived__ it?__ If __I__ had __moved __any __faster __or __kicked__ any__ harder, __the__ Hokage __and __the __other __Jonin __would __have __definitely __suspected __something. __I__'__ll __have __to __finish __this __as __quickly __and __easily __as __I__ can._

Kabuto stalked toward Naruto and focused chakra to his right hand. He stood over Naruto and carefully kicked away chucks of rubble until he had a clear glimpse of Naruto's back.

"I am sorry, Naruto-kun, but I don't have any choice. Hopefully, you won't feel a thing," Kabuto said and pulled his hand back to strike. Kabuto plunged his chakra-scalpel into the center of Naruto's back, slicing through muscles, organs, even bone. Naruto's body shuddered and a muffled scream cut through the arena. Kabuto withdrew his hand and deactivated his scalpels. He straightened out and put on his best "sad smiling" face. He turned to walk away, trying his hardest to look regretful, when he heard the loud _pop_! Kabuto spun around and saw a cloud of white smoke where Naruto's body used to be.

"A shadow clone?" Kabuto exclaimed and searched for the real Naruto. His search ended with the sight of a gray blur as it crashed into his chest. Kabuto's lungs emptied as Mjolnir drove him up into the air. The initial blow broke two of Kabuto's ribs, while the fall back to the ground broke another two. He collapsed onto the ground and curled into a painful ball, barely able to lift his head to look for what hit him.

Mjolnir hovered in midair above Kabuto like an executioner's axe, its thick stone head pointed downward. Kabuto felt a shiver of fear cut through him. The hammer spun in the air, righting itself, and flew back across the arena to Naruto's outstretched hand.

"Thou wouldst slay a comrade in cold blood? Foolish knave, thou did not reckon the might of Thor!" Naruto said in pure "Thor Speak". Lightning cackled off Mjolnir and reflected in Naruto's stormy blue eyes. "Yield."

Kabuto tried to steal another glace at his Jonin Sensei, but the yellow-eyed Jonin was gone. Kabuto's heart sank; he had failed his lord and master and he knew there would be severe consequences to that.

"I give up," Kabuto muttered and waved for the medical ninja. The medics rushed to his side and began healing his shattered torso. Meanwhile, Naruto's face was plastered with a silly fox-like grin as he turned and struggled to walk up the stairs to the catwalk, leaning heavily on the railing. When he reached the catwalk, Naruto plopped down on the ground, leaned his head back against the wall, and let out a tired sigh.

"Naruto, are you alright?" asked Choji.

"I'll be fine," Naruto smiled weakly. "That kick messed up my back pretty good."

"You're lucky you didn't break your back," Shikamaru interjected. "And you got really lucky with that shadow clone." Naruto looked up at the pineapple-headed Nara and could see the wheels turning inside the strategist's head. Naruto grinned; leave it to Shikamaru to see through everything right away.

"What do you mean?" asked Ino. "Shadow clones are Naruto's best move."

"You heard it yourself, Naruto's chakra is still all messed up from the Forest of Death," Shikamaru explained. "The fact that he didn't create one hundred clones like usual is proof of that."

"He's right," Naruto nodded. "If Hayate-san hadn't stood over me exactly the way he did, I never would've been able to pull off that clone substitution and hide behind him."

"Not a bad strategy for a loudmouthed blonde," Shikamaru said with a lazy smile before Ino bashed him on the head.

"What was that about loudmouth blondes, you lazy ass?" Ino roared. Shikamaru held the growing lump on his head, but wisely didn't reply save for whispering: "Troublesome." Choji, meanwhile, laughed his large buttocks off, spraying crumbs of potato chips everywhere.

The board sprang to life again, but everyone on the catwalks was silent. They knew who was left and the repercussions that this match would have.

"Neji Hyuuga and Hinata Hyuuga report to the arena," Hayate announced. Neji walked to the ring confidently, his bandaged hands flexing, a smirk fixed upon his face. Hinata, on the other hand, looked ready to faint. She looked terrified and flinched when Hayate called her name.

Down on the arena floor, Kurenai watched as her student meekly made her way to the catwalk stairs. She wanted to shout out some kind of encouragement to Hinata, but the Hokage had strictly ruled that there could be no coaching of any kind from any of the Jonin sensei during the preliminaries.

While she walked down the stairs, Hinata stole a quick glance at her crush, hoping he'd be watching her and that seeing him watching her might give her the courage to face her cousin. But Naruto was still sitting against the wall, eyes closed, lightly snoring.

_Naruto-kun __deserves __his __rest,_ Hinata thought sadly. _He__ worked __so __hard __to __get __here, __I__ must __show__ him__ that __I__'__ve __worked __just as __hard, __even __if __he __isn__'__t __watching __right __now._

Hinata straightened up as she stepped off the stairs and did her best not to flinch beneath her cousin's glare.

"I've been looking forward to this for a long time, Hinata-_sama,_" Neji spat out the honorific like it was poisonous. "You should just drop out now. A failure like you doesn't deserve to be in the Main Branch of the Hyuuga Clan, much less being promoted to Chunin. Fate decreed that you will lose this match the moment I was chosen to be your opponent."

_I__ mustn__'__t __give __up, __I__ mustn__'__t __give __up, __I __mustn__'__t__ give __up!_ Hinata chanted inside her head. _Naruto-kun __would __never __give __up __so__ neither __can __I!_

"I don't believe you," Hinata whispered back.

"What did you say? If you are going to talk back to your superiors, at least have the courage to do it so they may hear you," Neji yelled back.

"I don't believe you!" Hinata shouted loudly, so loudly that she actually frightened herself in the process. _I__didn__'__t__know__I__could__do__that!_

"We are free to make our own fate," she continued. "Just as I am free to stand and fight the battles of my choosing."

"Only fools fight against Fate," Neji sneered and activated his Byakugan. "I would say goodbye to your pathetic friends and teacher, Hinata-_san_. After I am through showing you Fate's true plan, you will never be able to see them again."

Hinata didn't answer, she just activated her own Byakugan and stepped into her Gentle Fist stance. Hayate stepped in-between the two Hyuuga and looked at them both.

"Remember, I will step in if needed," he said with a small shot of killing intent aimed at Neji. "Hinata Hyuuga vs Neji Hyuuga…FIGHT!"

Neji immediately rushed at Hinata, thrusting his chakra-tipped fingers at her chest. Hinata quickly leapt backward, using her natural flexibility to avoid Neji's follow-up strikes. This continued for several minutes, Neji rushing forward in attack and Hinata dodging at the last second to avoid the deadly Gentle Fist strikes.

"Fight back, you coward," Neji snarled, growing more and more frustrated. "You're only delaying the inevitable."

Hinata didn't reply, all her focus was fixed on dodging Neji's next strike. In his frustration, Neji overextended his thrust and left himself open. Hinata darted in and landed a single blow on Neji's left arm. Neji jumped back, his left arm hanging useless at his side.

"What just happened?" Ino wondered from the catwalks. "All Hinata did was poke Neji in the arm."

"You don't have a Hyuuga on your team, so allow me to explain," said Lee. "Guy-sensei taught Tenten and I Goken, the Strong Fist style of taijutsu, which focuses on blunt force trauma, bruising, and breaking bone. But the Hyuuga clan's taijutsu, the Gentle Fist, does internal damage, attacking the nerves and chakra pathways and chakra points directly. One touch, a single poke, can be devastating, even lethal. Neji is a true genius, a prodigy in his clan's taijutsu and he is my eternal rival for it," Lee finished seriously.

_Amazing,_ Ino thought as she watched Neji and Hinata battle. A sly smile crept over her face. _I __wonder __if __I __could __combine__ that __with __my __family__'__s __ability?__ Being __able __to __disable __someone __with __a __single __touch __would __make __mind walking __a__ whole __lot __safer._

Back in the arena, Neji was nearly frothing with anger. His chakra pathways were still intact and undamaged, Hinata had merely nicked a nerve in his upper arm. Already feeling was returning to his fingertips, but it was his pride that had been damaged most of all.

_How dare that weakling lay a hand on me? She may be a member of the Main Branch, but she is still nothing compared to me! I am the genius; I am last year's Rookie of the Year!_

Enraged, Neji dashed at Hinata, moving much faster than he had before. He reached out with his injured arm and grabbed a hold of Hinata's right wrist. Channeling chakra into his fingertips, Neji quickly attacked the chakra points along her right arm. Hinata let out a painful cry as her entire arm shut down completely.

"You truly are weak," Neji sneered. "Even when I left you an opening, your attack was pathetic and weak. You didn't even manage to shut down the chakra point in my shoulder; you barely managed to tweak the nerve." Neji grabbed Hinata's coat sleeve with his free hand and ripped the sleeve away. Hinata's bare arm was covered in fingertip-sized bruises, her chakra points completely closed by Neji's attacks. Cruelly, he channeled chakra into his pointer finger and dug it into one of the bruises.

Hinata's scream echoed throughout the arena. And it was this scream that woke Naruto up.

"What the heck is going on?" he muttered as he stood up. "What was that noise?"

"That jerk Neji is torturing Hinata," Ino growled. Naruto stepped to the railing and stared down at the two Hyuugas. Neji continued to press his finger into each of Hinata's bruises, making her scream each time. To the side, Naruto could see Asuma-sensei's hand on Kurenai-sensei's shoulder, keeping her from interfering in the match. The red-eyed woman's pain and helplessness was written all over her face. It quickly turned to shock and horror when Neji released Hinata's arm and slammed both chakra-powered palms into Hinata's stomach. The blow sent Hinata flying across the arena and onto the ground next to the catwalk stairs.

"Hinata is unable to continue," Hayate immediately announced. "Neji Hyuuga is the winner."

"Heh, of course you'd step in for a member of the Hyuuga Main House," Neji sneered as he walked toward the stairs. "Those weak cowards probably paid to have Hinata advance this far in the Exams."

"N-N-Neji-nii-san," Hinata whispered as he began to walk up the steps.

"What do you want?" he asked with distain.

"I, I'm glad you won," Hinata whispered after she coughed up a mouthful of blood. "You've been forced into the Branch Family by a cruelty of Fate; perhaps things are balanced now that you defeated a member of the Main Family today."

Neji stopped on the stairs, his fingers tightening around the railing. "You—you let me win, didn't you? Of course you did, you're in the Main Family! You could have activated the seal on my forehead anytime you wanted to and forced me to submit. How—how dare you! Fate decreed that I would be made superior to you! Fate decreed that I would be the victor here today, not your filthy charity!"

Neji's Byakugan reactivated and he dashed for Hinata in a white blur, his fingers aimed for her heart. Across the arena, Kurenai elbowed Asuma in the groin and raced for Hinata, Guy lunged for Neji, and Hayate sped to get between them. But they would all be too late to stop Neji…

There was a sudden crack of thunder and a grey blur appeared in front of Hinata. Too late to stop, Neji struck anyway, confident that whatever had managed to get between him and Hinata would be obliterated and she would quickly follow.

Neji let out a loud scream of pain as his chakra-tipped fingers shattered against the Uru hammer, Mjolnir. Clutching his broken hand, Neji stared at the hammer then spun around to see its wielder walking down the stairs.

"How dare you interfere! A commoner like you has no business sticking his nose in Hyuuga business!" he shouted at Naruto.

"You would strike down your own defenseless blood and you rave at my interference?" Naruto growled back, his voice deepening like thunder. "Thou art nothing but a rabid dog biting at the hand that seeks to do you no harm."

"Did the Main Branch pay you to look after her too?" Neji asked. "She is a failure, not worthy of the title she was given. Fate allows me to do as I will because I am the superior!"

"Fate? Heh, I have met Fate herself, Hyuuga. I have defied her and her works many times and I can surely say that you are no agent of hers. I do not understand why you hate your innocent and caring cousin, but if you lift another finger to harm her, you will suffer the wrath of Thor!" said Naruto as he summoned Mjolnir back to his hand. By now the three Jonin had arrived and placed themselves between the three Genin. Kurenai immediately looked after Hinata and waved the medical ninja over to take her to the hospital immediately, while Guy and Hayate placed themselves between Neji and Naruto.

"Enough of this!" the Hokage's voice boomed across the arena. "Another childish outburst and I will see you all disqualified! Now, will all the winners please return to the center of the arena."

The victorious Genin marched down the stairs and spread out in front of the Ram Seal Statue. Everyone gave Gaara a wide berth, Hayate stood precautiously behind Naruto, and Guy remained beside Neji just in case.

"Congratulations on advancing to the Chunin Exam Finals!" the Hokage beamed. "The finals will be a single elimination tournament, no holds barred, taking place in exactly one month, giving you all time to rest, recover, and train for your matchups. In front of me is a box filled with numbers. Each contestant will select a number from the box to determine your matchup in the finals."

Each Genin picked a small numbered ball out a simple box Anko carried past the line of Genin. Each Genin held out their number for Ibiki to see and write down on a small scrap of paper. Since Sasuke was still in the infirmary, he was given the last number remaining in the box. Once he recorded everyone's number, Ibiki handed the list to the Hokage.

"The matchups for the Chunin Exam Finals are:

_Match One: Naruto Uzumaki vs. Neji Hyuuga_

_Match Two: Choji Akimichi vs. Shino Aburame_

_Match Three: Ino Yamanaka vs. Sasuke Uchiha_

_Match Four: Rock Lee vs. Gaara of the Desert_

_Match Five: Shikamaru Nara vs. Dosu_

"These matches are all final," said the Hokage. "Again, the competition will resume in precisely one month. Until then you are all dismissed and on leave. Congratulations."

With that the Jonin senseis sought out their triumphant or dejected students. Asuma Sarutobi could barely contain his enjoyment; all three of his students had advanced into the finals. The second generation of Ino-Shika-Cho was beginning as a huge success. The Hokage was also very pleased as the large majority of remaining Genin were from Konoha.

Naruto didn't even bother looking for Kakashi; he knew the Jonin would be too busy checking on Sasuke to be there now. Instead he cast a sideways look at Neji, who was standing with Guy and Lee. Guy and Lee were shouting praises over youth and how they were going to start training for the Finals immediately; Neji was glaring at Naruto, trying to look as tough as possible while one of the medics bandaged his broken fingers.

A small grin crept across Naruto's face as he drew Mjolnir from his belt. "Hey, Neji!" he called.

"You have something more to say, commoner?"

"Just this: you had better give your soul to Kami, because your ass belongs to the God of Thunder!" Naruto said and vanished in a bolt of lightning.

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

Well, it's been a good while, but I think that is one of the things I'm becoming known for. A) great stories filled with awesomeness, B) ending chapters with terribly awesome cliffhangers, and C) taking forever to update. Well, I'd love to see anyone work 80 hours a week, train, and still find time for family and occasionally friends and still put out good chapters for his fics hahaha

I originally wrote this chapter much closer to canon, leaving the matches the way they were, but that got boring almost immediately. I have read a zillion fics that do the Chunin Exams almost frame for frame as it is in the manga/anime and, frankly, I think its a little done. I hope that my different take on the events will appeal to you all. These changes will continue on through the fic and there will be more changes and swings to the story as it goes on. I hope the changes I made to characters (Ino and Tenten in particular) don't piss too many people off. I wanted to make them a little more powerful/better fighters without making them too ridiculous. I have definite plans for them. I hope the rest of the action was up to expectations.

Let me know if there are any issues and ideas. I love hearing from my readers.

Read and Review!

N.W.


	4. Chapter 4

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or Thor/Marvel. They belong to their respected and awesome owners and this fic is purely for fun and nonprofit.

* * *

><p>THUNDERER<p>

_Chapter 4_

_Enter the Ero  
><em>

**Konoha**

**Downtown**

Naruto reappeared on the rooftop of his apartment building, tired. The transformation, using his new powers, and fighting Kabuto had taken a heavy toll on the teen. Combined with the fact that his chakra was still fluctuating out of control and his wounds, it was enough to turn even the insanely-high stamina of the boy to an exhausted mush. With a sigh and shuffle of feet, Naruto trudged down the stairs to his tiny apartment. He walked past the new "Die Demon Die!" graffiti written on his hallway wall without really looking at it. It was nothing new for him; he'd paint over it tomorrow.

Naruto entered his apartment and closed the door behind him. It was a small, unkempt apartment consisting of a bedroom, small living area with a sink and hotplate for a kitchen, and a bathroom barely large enough to stand (or sit) in. Naruto dropped Mjolnir to the ground as he stumbled to his bed. The hammer landed with a heavy _thud_ and splintered several of the floorboards.

_I know Thor said it would take time and training before I was as strong as him, but I could really use that godly durability about now. For a guy who was supposed to be able to take punches from gods, Celestials, and other super-powered types, I feel like I just got my ass kicked._

Naruto collapsed face first onto his bed, asleep before his face hit the pillow.

Elsewhere, darkness fell over Konoha. The many participants of the Chunin Exams curled up in their homes or hospital beds, sound asleep after their long and often painful test. Only two participants remained awake: Gaara, the jinchūriki from Suna, and Kabuto. While Gaara was always awake out of fear of losing control to his tenant, Kabuto being awake was very unusual.

Dressed in his purple uniform with a thick black cloak over his shoulders, Kabuto raced across the village rooftops undetected. No longer holding back or hiding his true abilities, Kabuto moved much faster than most Jounin, easily jumping over the long gaps between buildings on his way toward the Hokage Tower. He made the final jump toward the tower and winced as he landed on street level. Beneath his cloak, Kabuto quickly channeled a small amount of healing chakra into his still sore and tender ribs.

_If I ever get a hold of Naruto again, I'm going to rip his intestines out through his mouth, jinchūriki or not! _Kabuto growled to himself. As the pain faded, Kabuto remembered his mission and donned a white ANBU mask before entering the Tower's main entrance. Moving with the poise and confidence of someone that was supposed to be in the Hokage Tower late at night, Kabuto silently headed up the stairs to the top floor. It was far less blatant taking the stairs than jumping through the Hokage's window to his office, after all.

Kabuto waited in the shadows as the Hokage's young secretary finished her paperwork for the day. He knew that the old Hokage was already resting at home; it wasn't a secret that the Hokage was too old for the job and Kabuto assumed that the trials and length of the Chunin Exams had worn out the elderly Kage. Once the secretary was finished and left for the day, Kabuto stepped out of the shadows and stepped toward the office door. He pulled a set of lock picks out of his cloak and, after a moment's tinkering, popped open the lock. He stepped into the Hokage's office, slightly taken back at the ease of breaking into the most powerful man in Konoha's office.

The office was slightly unkempt with piles of paperwork that hadn't been done during the Chunin Exams. Kabuto sneaked over to the Hokage's desk and began to search. He passed over mission reports and mission requests, ignored Academy scores, and shuffled the Chunin Exam updates around until he found the intel report he was looking for.

It was a report from an unnamed spy of Jiraiya's about an archeological dig near the border of Earth Country. While most of the items found were useless nick-knacks, there was one item of great beauty that was being sent to Konoha for study. Along with its beauty, there seemed to be a chakra of some sort being eminated off the item. The spy reported tales of whispering voices surrounding the item, of heavy equipment being suddenly thrown across the area by an invisible force, and even a story about a man dressed in green walking around the camp, looking for something.

_Supersitious junk, _Kabuto scoffed at the report, _I should be slitting Naruto-gaki's throat for embarrassing me in the exams, not fumbling around in the dark like this._

Complaining aside, Kabuto did his work quickly and diligently. He tucked the spy's report into his cloak pocket—it was a minor report and would be days before anyone knew it was missing—and searched the rest of the room for the small crate the item had been shipped in. He found it buried in the corner beneath a pile of old grievances and complaints from the woman's hot springs about a white-haired peeping tom and a dog-eared copy of Icha Icha Paradise.

Kabuto carefully cracked open the crate's lid to make sure the item was truly inside it. A golden gleam lit up the darkness of the office as he removed the lid. Kabuto couldn't help but smile at the sight. His gaze lingered on the contents of the box for an entire minute and he would have remained fixed on the spot for even longer if a voice in the hallway hadn't startled him out of his daze.

Kabuto quickly replaced the crate's lid and picked it up. The box weighed very little and he held it lightly under his arm. Kabuto stood behind the office door for a moment, listening carefully for the voice. It belonged to Ibiki, the head of Konoha's I & T department, and someone Kabuto definitely did not want to run into. Throwing open the window, Kabuto clutched the box close to his chest, leapt into the night, and raced to deliver the box to his master.

-T-

_The world was cold. Nothing but icy cold that ate flesh and cut deep into bone._

_There is nothing to see but barren rock and spires of ice across the entire horizon._

_Here the darkness reigns eternal. There is no sun, no dawn, just the perpetual gloom of night. The only illumination comes from the veil of stars, carving a wicked path through the angry clouds and reflecting off the ice. In their quiet wake the endless blizzard shreds the sky, unleashing a torrent of hard, icy rain and thick, cruel snow._

_There is a storm coming and, from it, there is no escape._

_It was their home and his hell._

Naruto woke from the dream in a shiver. From Thor's memories, Naruto knew that the dream was of Jotunheim, the ice world of the Frost Giants. But that world, as well as the rest of the Realm Eternal, save Midgard, was destroyed in Ragnarok.

_Just bad memories,_ Naruto thought. _I've got more important things to worry about like training for the Finals!_

Naruto stepped out of bed, stubbing his toe on Mjolnir in the process. While he bounced around on one foot, cursing in Norse, he heard a knock on his door.

"Hang on, I'll be right there!" Naruto called out, still grumbling under his breath as he walked to the door. He swung it open and looked up at the wall of ANBU in front of him.

Bear stood nearly as tall as his namesake and easily weighed the same judging from the slabs of muscle barely hid beneath his uniform.

"Hokage-sama wishes to see you as soon as possible," Bear reported. Naruto looked up at him—even with his recent growth spurt he was still significantly shorter than the ANBU—and nodded.

"Thank you. Tell the Hokage I will be there in a few minutes," Naruto said and Bear vanished in a swirl of leaves. Naruto closed the door, turned, and picked Mjolnir off the ground.

"That's the last time I leave you in the middle of the floor," he muttered to the hammer before tossing it on his bed. The hammer landed on the thin mattress with a heavy _thump_ followed by a loud _rip _and _crash _as it tore through the mattress and imbedded itself in the floorboards once again. Naruto slapped himself on the forehead with his palm, rolled his eyes, and headed for the shower.

**Fifteen minutes later…**

**Konoha**

**Hokage Tower**

"It's good to see you Naruto-kun," the Hokage greeted as Naruto walked into his office. With a single gesture, he signaled his secretary that he wished to be left alone until further notice. "You put on quite the performance yesterday."

"Thanks, Old Man," Naruto said with a cool smile, though not quite his usual big fox-like grin. Not one to miss much of anything, Sarutobi noticed. He cleared his voice and slightly cast his eyes downward.

"Naruto, I believe I owe you an apology," he said. "When you appeared in here the other day during the Chunin Exam, I was very short with you. I didn't believe your story about Orochimaru or about your new powers. There was no reason for me not to believe you and even less reason for me to be rude to you. Please forgive me."

Naruto shifted uneasily in his chair; he was the one always apologizing to the Hokage, not the other way around. "Er, it's alright, Old Man, really. I was still getting used to everything and probably overreacted a little bit."

"Well," the Hokage said and straightened himself out, "we all make mistakes, Naruto. And I am truly sorry I acted that way. Orochimaru was my student and his betrayal was very difficult for me to get over. It is still a very sore subject and I believe I just didn't want to hear that he had so easily snuck back into the village."

"He's definitely a snake," Naruto agreed. "And what he did to Sasuke-teme is just gross."

"Well, fortunately, Kakashi took care of that little problem before he left to train Sasuke for the finals."

"Ok, that's goo—WHAT DO YOU MEAN KAKASHI-SENSEI LEFT WITH SASUKE? WHO IS GONNA TRAIN ME FOR THE FINALS?" Naruto shouted in shock.

"There's no need to shout, Naruto," Sarutobi said and unplugged his ears. "Kakashi felt that because Sasuke is against Gaara, who clearly has issues, he needed to devote his time in training Sasuke for this month."

"Great! So just because Sasuke is going against that sand guy, he gets special treatment from Kakashi-sensei and the councils. Meanwhile, I'm going against last year's Rookie of the Year, a fate-sucking Prodigy that can turn my insides into jello with a single poke," groaned Naruto and plopped into a chair.

_He has a point, _the Hokage thought. _I know the Council ordered Kakashi to train Sasuke and Sasuke alone. They probably ordered him to teach Sasuke as many jutsu as possible during their trip too. I'm sorry, Naruto. I've let them grow too powerful in the last few years. It isn't right for you to have to pay for my mistakes._

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but what's done is done. However, I will make it up to you. What if I found you a replacement teacher to train you for the finals?"

Naruto looked at the Hokage sideways. "It isn't that closet perv Ebisu, is it? Because he couldn't fight his way out of a battle against a bag full of Jotenheim newborn children, let alone keep up with my new powers."

The Hokage paled and quickly faked a cough to hopefully hide it from Naruto. Ebisu had been his first choice to help the boy; Konohamaru and his team were already doing D-Ranked missions and Ebisu had plenty of free time to train Naruto.

"Ahem, no not Ebisu," Sarutobi said, probably a little too quickly. "I have several people in mind, but, um, before I can decide, I need to know what your nature affinity is."

"My what?"

"Your nature affinity," Sarutobi explained, "refers to the natural element of your chakra. For example, I have a very high affinity for Fire and Earth chakra. This allows me to use stronger jutsu and further powers my techniques. Every Shinobi has a different nature affinity; though many in Konoha, like the former Uchiha Clan, have a Fire affinity. So what's yours?"

"I have no idea."

"Kakashi never tested you for nature affinities? Remind me to have him doing D-Ranks for a week after all this," Sarutobi said and dug into his desk. He pulled out a small slip of paper and held it out to Naruto. "This is chakra paper. It reacts to a person's chakra and will show us which affinity you have."

"What's going to happen?" Naruto asked and reached for the paper.

"Focus some chakra into the paper" Sarutobi instructed. "If it splits in half, you have a wind affinity. If it grows wet, water; if it crumbles, lightning; if it ignites, fire; and if it turns to dust, earth."

Naruto nodded and focused his chakra. He wanted to only focus a little, but because of his horrible chakra control, Naruto's chakra burst into the paper like a broken dam. The slip of paper leapt from his hand and hovered in midair. First it crumbled, second, it grew soaking wet, third, it split in half, and lastly, the remains crumbled into fine grains of dust. The dust vanished before it could settle on the Hokage's desk.

Both Naruto and Sarutobi stared at the vanished piece of paper in silence. Neither knew what to say. For Naruto, he had no idea whether or not what happened was supposed to have happened or if he made a mistake. Sarutobi, however, had seen this done dozens of times, but he had never seen anyone with four powerful affinities, no matter how old or how skilled they were.

"Um, sorry, old man. I didn't mean to do that," Naruto nervously broke the silence.

Sarutobi laughed. "My boy, you didn't do anything wrong. In fact, that was one of the most incredible things I've ever seen."

"Huh?"

"Most Jounin only have two affinities, and most of the time one is significantly weaker than the other. You have four: lightning, water, wind, and earth; and each one is incredibly powerful. You have no visibly weaker affinities," Sarutobi explained, amazed. "The lightning, water, and wind affinities I can understand with you being this new god of thunder, but where did this earth affinity come from?"

"Thor was the son of Odin All-Father and Gaea, Mother Earth herself," Naruto explained. "In addition to power of the storm, he could command the earth as well."

"It sounds like your predecessor was quite the person, Naruto," Sarutobi smiled.

"God actually," Naruto chuckled. Sarutobi rolled his eyes and laughed.

"Well, because of your multiple affinities, Kakashi probably would have been the best person to train you," Sarutobi began.

"Figures," Naruto grumbled.

"Only because of his Sharingan and his collection of jutsu," the Hokage finished saying. "Unfortunately, we have very few other Lightning users in the village. Ebisu could help you with Water jutsu…"

Naruto cut the Hokage off by shaking his head.

"My son Asuma is possibly the strongest Wind user in the village, but his entire team requires his attention for the Finals. I'm afraid the only strong Earth users in the village are members of the Hyuuga Main Branch and they won't work with anyone outside of their clan out of paranoia and arrogance."

"So you are basically saying I'm on my own," Naruto said softly.

"I'm afraid so. I wish I could help you Naruto, but as Hokage, it is a conflict of interest for me to help any Shinobi under my command in the finals. The other Kages would see it as trying to heighten our own standing and would create a scandal over it," Sarutobi sighed. "It will be hard enough defending the fact that we have so many Genin in the finals already."

"It's not your fault, Old Man," Naruto said, his bright smile already back on his face. "I have all of Thor's memories; I just need to try things out on my own until I get it right."

"Won't that be dangerous? You don't know the limits of this new power, Naruto."

"Well, now that you mention it," Naruto's face turned into the very picture of innocence, "I could probably use a big, private training ground to train in. Probably should be away from the rest of the village, just in case."

The Hokage rolled his eyes. "You're going to be blowing things up, aren't you?"

"Yep."

"Causing gigantic bolts of lightning to crash down from the heavens?"

"Most definitely."

"Creating hurricane force storms, tsunami-sized waves, and shaking the very pillars of the earth?"

"At least once or twice." Naruto's innocent smile never faltered for a second.

Sarutobi stared at the teen in amazement. He had been joking at first; given Naruto's aptitude for pranks, it wasn't as strange as it sounded for him to be experimenting with different prank ideas and having them blow up in his face. Often literally.

_But with Naruto's new powers…_ shuddered the old Kage. _ He may really be able to do those things. He's only barely begun to tap into that power and I've already seen him do things that not even I could do in my prime! The way he used that hammer of his in the preliminaries is proof enough of that, not to mention that Lightning teleport he did during the second part of the Exams. I still haven't figured that out yet!_

Sarutobi quickly composed himself and cleared his throat. "Do to the nature of your new powers, I believe that giving you your own training field would be the best course of action." He quickly shuffled a few papers aside and looked at a sheet listing all the training fields in Konoha and who was using them.

"A move here, a change there, ah, here we are, Naruto," Sarutobi said and handed Naruto a slip of paper. "Training Ground 99."

"Where the name of the realm eternal is that?"

"Training Ground 99 is a training field used only by ANBU Captains, the Sannin, and the Hokage. It is located on the northern border of Konoha. It is the largest training field the village has access to and contains all types of terrain. It should suit your purposes nicely. I will inform ANBU that it is off-limits for the rest of the month for your privacy."

"This is great! Thanks Old Man," Naruto beamed. "I'm gonna go get started right away!" Before Sarutobi could protest, Naruto slammed his hammer into the ground and vanished in a bolt of lightning.

"DAMN YOU, NARUTO!" the Hokage yelled at the smoking black spot in his floor.

-T-

Naruto reappeared in midair, hovering high above downtown Konoha.

"It's really peaceful up here," he said to himself. "There's no one to bother me, no one glaring or whispering "There's the demon" under their breath at me. I could get used to this."

Meanwhile, down on the ground, people began stopping their day-to-day activities and noticed something, or rather someone, in the sky. They were amazed; even in a shinobi village full of near impossible and incredible things to see, you never saw someone hovering in midair like that.

After a moment, Naruto got his bearings and flew north toward Konoha's border. As he flew, he happened to pass over a large recreation/spa area, complete with dual hot spring baths. Making a note of the place for when he was finished training, Naruto started to fly away when he heard a loud crash followed by an even louder feminine scream.

Pausing and hovering in place, Naruto saw a white blur appear beneath him and quickly grow larger. Before he could do anything, an older man with a spiky mane of white hair crashed into Naruto, knocking him out of the air. The two plummeted back to earth and crashed into Training Ground 99 with Naruto taking the brunt of the impact. While Naruto skipped like a stone several times before being buried half underground, the white haired stranger was cushioned by the new God of Thunder and was barely even bruised.

"Well, that could have been a lot worse," he said as he stood up and brushed himself off. "Thanks for cushioning my fall, stranger. It was lucky for me that you happened to be flying by at the time…"

The man's own words echoed in his head for a moment. _Flying by? No one can just be flying by? This must be the one Sensei mentioned in his message. At least I don't have to go hunting for this kid now._

Meanwhile, Mjolnir rose off the ground and flew into Naruto's waiting hand. The blonde picked himself out of the ground and stomped toward the stranger. Sparks of electricity danced off the hammer as he grew closer.

"Oh, there you are," smiled the stranger. "I'm real sorry about that. I'll have to watch where I'm going next time."

"You dare assault the God of Thunder?" Naruto said bluntly.

"Oh no," the stranger stammered. "I didn't mean to hit, I mean, assault you at all. It was an accident."

"Explain thyself."

The stranger looked at Naruto sideways. "Listen kid, I don't know where you learned to talk or who you think you are, but you better check that attitude before it gets you in trouble. Now I said I was sorry, but you're taking this a tad too far."

"I simply wish to know where the crashing noise and woman's screams came from," Naruto replied and returned Mjolnir to his belt. "I believe it is the least thy can do for crashing into me like that."

"Well, if you really must know, I was conducting some…research when one of my subjects became unnecessarily alarmed and completely overreacted."

Naruto sweat dropped. "You were peeping on the woman's hot springs, got caught, and got your ass kicked into the sky, didn't you?"

"Well, I wouldn't quite put it that way…" the stranger said before Naruto cut him off with a backhand to the head.

"PERVERT!"

The blow sent the stranger barreling backwards. He landed upside down against a tree, barely conscious. Naruto wiped his hands and turned back toward the training grounds. He took five steps when he heard the stranger struggle to get up.

"Ya know, that's no way to treat your elders," the stranger muttered as he brushed himself off.

"And that is no way to treat maidens," Naruto shot back.

"Well, I don't think not all of them were what I'd call maidens…" the stranger started to say, but stopped when he saw Naruto's hand drop toward his hammer. "But there's no need to bash a man's skull in for a difference of opinion, am I right?"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "If that is all, you should probably leave. This is a private training ground for Shinobi and I need to get started. It would be safer for you back in the village—away from the hot springs!" Naruto said.

"Shinobi training?" the stranger wondered. "Well, you're in luck. I happen to be something of an old Shinobi myself. Maybe I could help you out, teach you a thing or two? Call it repayment for crashing into you earlier."

Naruto gave the stranger a curious look. True, the stranger was tall and strongly built as a Shinobi could be, but was dressed very eccentrically for a shinobi. He wore a dark green short shirt kimono and matching pants; beneath that he wore mesh armor and hand guards. A simple black belt kept his outfit together. But the bright red vest with two yellow circles on it made for poor camouflage for a stealthy ninja. Also, the traditional wooden geta sandals would be almost useless in darting from tree to tree or fighting. He did wear a forehead protector, but his did not have the symbol for Konoha on it. Instead, it had horns and the kanji for "OIL" on it.

_Those two red lines going down his face are pretty strange too,_ thought Naruto, _but then again, I am the reincarnation of an ancient god and used to dress in come-kill-me orange._

"Just who are you?" Naruto asked.

"Hahaha! I'll tell you who I am," the stranger shouted and struck a kabuki pose. "I am: the Sage of Mount Myoboku; the free and uninhibited; women want me, men want to be me, and children worship me; evil-doers tremble at my name! I AM THE NOBLE SANNIN! THE GALLANT JIRAIYA!"

"You forgot pervert," Naruto muttered.

"I did?" Jiraiya seemed slightly shocked. "Well, no matter. For I am no ordinary pervert; I AM A SUPER PERVERT!"

Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose to ward off the impending headache. "Why are you announcing it like that? No wonder women kick your ass into orbit."

"Hmm, that actually isn't a bad idea. My Transparency Jutsu and my Toad Flatness Jutsu would probably work a lot better if I didn't shout and giggle so much," Jiraiya mused. "What's your name, kid: Goldilocks?"

"Naruto Uzumaki."

"Well, it's nice to meet you Goldilocks," Jiraiya grinned.

Naruto sighed and turned to walk away. "Whatever, have a good life."

"Now wait a second," Jiraiya protested. "I offered to train you! You don't just pass up a lesson from a Sannin!"

"I'm sorry, but what did you say?" Naruto asked, eerily similar to his sensei's famous "hip attitude."

Jiraiya slapped his palm against his forehead. "Fine, gaki. Go play with your hammer. I'll just wait to crash into someone else and teach them the mysteries of the Shinobi universe."

Naruto paused and then turned around. "Do you know anything about chakra control?" Jiraiya looked at him like Naruto just asked him if the sky was blue.

"In the Forest of Death, Orochimaru hit me in the stomach with some kind of jutsu. Since then, my chakra control is absolutely horrible."

Jiraiya frowned and thought back to the Hokage's message. _…In addition to these changes in both power and personality, Orochimaru hurt Naruto while in the Forest of Death. I believe he put some kind of seal on top of Minato's seal. If he managed to disrupt Minato's seal, then all of Konoha could be in jeopardy._

"Well, I happen to be an expert in seals and removing them," Jiraiya boasted. "Let me take a look."

Naruto complied, removing his armored top. Jiraiya was shocked by the amount of sheer muscle the teen had. On Naruto's stomach were five, fingertip-sized bruises spread out like an open hand.

"Channel some chakra," Jiraiya instructed. "It should reveal the seal." Naruto did as he was told. He crossed his fingers into the ram seal and tried very hard to focus his chakra. Immediately, Orochimaru's Five Element Seal appeared on Naruto's stomach and, after another second of concentration, the Eight Trigrams Seal appeared.

_Thank goodness Orochimaru still doesn't know how to make a decent seal,_ Jiraiya thought as he inspected them both. _His Five Prong Seal is just strong enough to screw with the Eight Trigrams Seal, cutting off several of Naruto's chakra pathways. It isn't strong enough to actually damage Minato's work._

"Is the Kyuubi seal intact?" Naruto asked. He asked, his voice a frightened whisper.

Jiraiya looked him in the eyes and nodded. "The seal is just fine. Orochimaru couldn't damage my student's work on his best day. By putting an odd numbered seal on top of an even, Orochimaru choked off several of your chakra pathways, which is why you don't have access to your normal amount of chakra and why your control stinks."

"You taught the Yondaime?"

"Yep, he was my greatest student," Jiraiya smiled, remembering his days as a Jounin Sensei. "I miss him," he added sadly. "Now, I can get rid of Orochimaru's seal for you, but it's going to hurt a lot."

"I understand," Naruto replied, tightened his abdominal muscles, and braced himself.

"You asked for it," Jiraiya smirked and his fingertips burst into purple flame. "Five Element Unseal!"

Jiraiya slammed his hand onto Orochimaru's seal. The purple flames burned into the bruises and the seal glowed brightly before shattering like glass. Naruto screamed in pain as chakra rushed through his body and he fell face first onto the ground.

Jiraiya stood over Naruto's slightly twitching body, giving the boy a gentle kick with his toe. "I warned you," he muttered before clapping his hands together. "Guess I have some free time on my hands," smiled the pervert as he headed back toward the hot springs.

-T-

_Naruto's Mindscape_

Naruto woke choking on a few inches of water, lying face down in a sewer tunnel. He scrambled to his feet, sputtering out curses and filthy water.

_Guess I'm back,_ Naruto thought as he instinctively reached for his hammer. He found Mjolnir secure on his belt and gave it a comforting pat. _Let's go see what the fox wants this time._

Naruto walked through the dirty tunnels, following the rows of pipes easily this time. As he walked, Naruto heard a faint singing and laughing.

_Well that probably isn't good,_ Naruto thought and sped off toward the Kyuubi's chamber. He twirled Mjolnir over his head and hurled it toward the chamber. Naruto flew in a blonde blur and hovered in the air in front of the singing and laughing Kyuubi. Immediately, Naruto saw why.

The cage was open.

Kyuubi was sitting just outside the cage door, preening its bushy tails, lightly singing a happy tune that Naruto didn't recognize. Not noticing him, Kyuubi shook itself and stood up; its demonic size took up almost the entire chamber.

_Well, this is interesting,_ Naruto thought as he stepped into the chamber. He remembered watching Thor battle Kyuubi before and knew the fox wasn't all powerful and could be defeated. Little did he know that just because the fox was not all powerful; that did not mean it still was not far stronger than he was.

"Enjoying yourself?" he asked. Kyuubi opened its eyes and paused in its preening to acknowledge Naruto's presence.

"Go away, little ningen," Kyuubi growled before going back to cleaning its tails. "Enjoy your last few seconds of existence before I completely take over your body and destroy all that you know and love."

"Thou really believe that I shall let thee take over my body, devour my soul, and destroy all that I hold dear? I say thee nay!" Naruto shouted and flung his hammer at Kyuubi with all his strength. The hammer smashed into Kyuubi's face and knocked the demon into the bars of its cage. The fox picked itself up and snarled as the hammer flew back to Naruto's hand.

"You insolent whelp! How dare you attack me! I am Kyuubi, the Nine-Tailed. I am power and fire incarnate, now and forever! Mortals greater than you have looked upon my magnificence and felt nothing but despair! You are nothing compared to me, mortal!"

Kyuubi lashed out with all nine of its tails. Naruto tried to move out of the way, but one of the tails caught him across the chest. Naruto flew backward and crashed into a brace of pipes. Naruto wheezed as he struggled to get up.

_One blow and it feels like I just got hit by a mountain,_ Naruto thought. _I don't know how something in my mind could hurt this much._

"Stay down, mortal. Stay down and accept the inevitable hell that awaits you and your world," Kyuubi snapped, licking its jaws.

"I—will—not!" Naruto snarled as he struggled to stand up. He used his hammer as a crutch and stepped forward on shaky legs. "Though I be a shinobi, a warrior born, this battle is far from over. This is my mind, I am in control of thee, not the other way around!"

"You're not the only one with power here," Naruto growled at the Nine-Tails and raised his hammer. The ankle deep water began to swell and rose to cover Naruto's knees. The raised water barely covered the fox's clawed feet.

"That's it? That's the best you could do; raise the water level in this pathetic sewer a few inches?" Kyuubi mocked. "You mortals truly are pathetic."

"And stop calling me a mortal," Naruto growled. "I AM GOD OF THUNDER!"

Kyuubi's eyes grew wide as Naruto slammed his hammer into the ground. A bolt of white lightning arced from the hammer blow, spreading across the sewer water. The electricity spread up the fox's ankles and the fox shuddered from the hundreds of thousands of volts traveling through it.

Naruto slammed the hammer into the ground again and again, driving lightning into the Kyuubi. Kyuubi trembled and shuddered from the force of the lightning. The fox collapsed just outside its cage and Naruto fell to one knee.

"That was impressive for a puny mortal," the fox muttered through its massive teeth.

"Glad you approve," Naruto muttered back. "Next time remember your basic science. Water conducts electricity." He tossed Mjolnir at the open cage gate and managed to close it halfway. The door slapped into Kyuubi's side. The fox growled and swatted the door away with one of its tails.

"Leave it open, I'm not going anywhere," Kyuubi growled.

"What do you mean? Weren't you were all "take over my body and devour my soul" about five minutes ago?"

"I still am," Kyuubi grumbled, "but your attack actually managed to harm me enough for me to need time to recover. It seems you do have a minuscule amount of power here."

"Who would've thought?" Naruto smirked with a foxy growl that Kyuubi actually found slightly amusing.

"Don't let it go to your head. I am still weak from being sealed; if I was at full power, your attack would have been as concerning as a mosquito nipping at one of my tails," Kyuubi growled. "So it seems we are at a bit of an impasse here, wouldn't you say?"

"Looks like," replied Naruto with a huff. "What do you think we should do? Shall we keep fighting or will you listen to my alternative?"

_He did actually manage to hurt me, _Kyuubi thought for a moment. _And he will grow stronger as well. Someday he may even be as strong as the ancestor I fought. I might as well listen to what the little god has to say._

"What do you propose?"

"Call a truce," Naruto said. "From what I see it, we're both in this together. From what I understand, if I die, so do you."

"All the more reason to take over your puny body and escape this idiotic seal," Kyuubi countered.

"And then you and I will continue fighting until we either destroy each other or destroy that "puny body" you want so much."

"As if you could possibly defeat me," Kyuubi sneered.

"It seems I can hurt you well enough," Naruto countered. Kyuubi rolled its large eyes and snorted.

"So what do you propose: that I return to my cage and simply give you access to my limitless chakra as rent? That I bow down to you and submit to you like a slave, start calling you Naruto-sama?"

"Not quite what I had in mind," Naruto replied with an eye roll. "I was going to suggest more of a symbiotic relationship."

"You scratch my back and I'll claw yours?" Kyuubi grinned.

"I'd appreciate you refraining from using the claws, but something like that. You stop trying to harm me by escaping, maybe even help me out a little bit, and I make your stay less horrible until I know enough rune magic to release you without killing me."

Kyuubi pondered for a moment; it wasn't a bad deal considering the damage that the boy was capable of and; since Kyuubi had almost as much access to the boy's mind as he did, Kyuubi just couldn't affect the boy without flooding his system with its chakra and even then it took four full tails of chakra; Kyuubi knew that rune magic was extremely powerful and was its best chance for escape. But of course, the fox couldn't just agree with the boy.

"I could always just take you over and devour your soul," Kyuubi said with a toothy smile.

"I could always just kill myself and drag you to Hel with me," Naruto countered with a fearless grin. "I know Hela always wanted to have a God of Thunder amongst her ranks of the damned and her pale skin would look almost ravishing in a fox-skin coat."

Kyuubi let out a bellowing laugh; Naruto nearly gagged on the rush of foul breath. "I like that," the fox said, "no fear of death, just a warrior's sense of honor. You're becoming more and more like him each day."

"Well, I am the new Thor," Naruto said sheepishly.

"I was referring to your father," Kyuubi growled as it turned back towards its cage. It lumbered in and spun in a tight circle before lying down, its nine tails curled around its body.

"You know who my father was?" Naruto asked. He ran toward the open cage and grabbed hold of the golden bars. "Who was he? How do you know him?"

"I'm amazed you haven't figured it out," Kyuubi muttered sleepily. "After all, how many blondes in Konoha had the skills to seal me away? It's a short list."

"But the Yondaime was the one…" Naruto started to say when it dawned on him.

"That's right kid. The Yondaime Hokage was your daddy," the fox said with no small amount of sick relish in its voice.

Naruto felt like he had been punched in the stomach. Bile built up in his mouth and the room started to spin. The last thing Naruto heard was the fox's laughter before everything went black.

-T-

"—id? Kid? Come on kid, wake up already. I didn't even hit you hard," Jiraiya complained as he shook Naruto, a fresh red handprint adorned his cheek. "Seriously, I've been gone for an hour doing research and you're still out cold."

Naruto let out a groan and shifted on the ground.

"Hey! You're alright!" Jiraiya exclaimed and helped Naruto sit up. "You had me worried for a minute there Naruto; I thought you were tougher than that. You really need the training if a simple unsealing knocks you out like that."

Naruto knocked Jiraiya aside and looked up at the older man. "Give me a moment."

"Sure, sure, take your time," Jiraiya said and stood back.

Naruto ran his hands through his hair and paused for a second to gently touch his whisker marks._ My own father…_

"You said you taught the Yondaime?" Naruto asked Jiraiya.

"Yep, he was my greatest achievement!" Jiriya boasted. "I'm more proud of him than I am my entire series of books."

"Did you teach my father how to seal the Nine-Tails into me?" Naruto asked in a whisper. Jiraiya's face fell and he crouched down to the young god of thunder's eye level.

"I taught him what I knew; didn't take him long to surpass me though," Jiraiya said seriously. "So you found out huh, fox told you?"

Naruto nodded. "His own son…even Odin was never so cruel."

Jiraiya's lips pursed together in a tight line. "I always thought it was cruel, but at the same time necessary."

"Necessary? How could sealing a monster into your own child's belly and then leaving him alone to fend off mobs for his whole life necessary?" Naruto howled, tears forming in his blue eyes.

"Because you were the only newborn in the village," Jiraiya said. "Because, even if there was another newborn, Minato didn't have the cruelty in him to ask another family to give up what he could not. Because only an Uzumaki could hope to contain the Nine Tails. Because Minato didn't trust anyone but his own flesh and blood to contain the fox. Take your pick."

"He's still a bastard," Naruto growled. "He's a noble bastard, but a bastard none the less."

"I'm inclined to agree with you," Jiraiya answered and stood up with a grunt. "Course if things had gone the way your old man had wanted, who knows what you'd be like now."

"What do you mean?"

"He wanted the village to see you as a hero, a savior even. Instead, they treated you like a scapegoat and went out of their way to ridicule and even attack you. Sarutobi-sensei tried his best to help you whenever he could, but there are too many factions opposing him to make any real progress."

"I know he tried, he was always the only one around for me," Naruto said before his face turned grim and serious. "But they'll all know just what they did. Everyone that ever laughed or spit in my face will know just who they have assaulted for years."

"You're not going to pull an Itachi, are you?" Jiraiya asked nervously. "Because if you are, I may have to put that seal back on you and throw on a few seals of my own design."

"Oh, no, Pervy-Sage," Naruto grinned. "I have something much better in mind. And you're going to help me."

"First of all, don't call me that. Only two people can call me that and they are both long gone. And two, why am I going to help you again?"

"Because you owe me, Pervy-Sage," Naruto said, ignoring Jiraiya's request. "Didn't you offer to teach me the mysteries of the shinobi universe? Well, I need a teacher to help me harness the power of the storm and earth and you volunteered."

Jiraiya looked at Naruto sideways. "You're going to cause a lot of trouble, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Kick a lot of ass?"

"Without a doubt."

"Make the ground tremble at your comings?"

"Definitely."

"Shake the very pillars of heaven to hound those that did you wrong and bring righteous justice to this world?"

"Guaranteed," Naruto said with a foxy grin that promised _godly _retribution.

Jiraiya thought for a moment. "Not interested."

Naruto fell face first onto the ground.

Jiraiya laughed and helped the large teen up. "However, I do owe you, seeing as you're practically family and all. How would you like to learn some of your dad's jutsu?"

-T-

**One Month Later**

The sun rose over the Hokage Monument like it did every morning, spreading light over the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Already the village was stirring, already feeling the giddy anticipation for the day's events: The Chunin Exam Finals. It was a highly celebrated occasion, for shinobi and civilians alike. The shinobi all felt a certain amount of pride as they rose and dressed for the matchups, although those with family or even children fighting felt a pang of worry with their pride. For the civilians, greedy excitement filled them as the Finals brought in visitors from all over the land, all with pockets full of money and the need to spend it. And for the competitors, each felt very different.

In the Hyuuga Compound, Neji stared hatefully at a photograph of his extended family, his fists clenched in hatred driven by cruel twists of fate.

In the Akimichi household, Choji stuffed his mouth with a stack of western style pancakes, a dozen eggs, four doughnuts, and a large pot of coffee.

Shino Aburame sat quietly in a small greenhouse, listening to his family's hives buzz around him.

Ino stared into a mirror, brushing out her long hair. Her eyes, however, were hollow and haunted. A shiver raced up her spine as she pictured a pair of swirling red eyes.

Rock Lee woke up with a loud yawn, quickly dressed in his green training leotard, strapped on his weights, and raced out of his house to squeeze in one last training session.

A pair of raccoon-blacked eyes blinked in the morning sun. Outside the window a chirping bird was suddenly silenced by a tendril of sand.

In the Nara house, Shikamaru shut off his troublesome alarm clock and rolled back over, struggling to squeeze in a few more moments of sleep.

Dosu sharpened a pair of kunai against his sound bracer, relishing the sound of metal scraping over metal.

Inside the all but abandoned Uchiha District, an untouched bed sat amongst haunted homes.

Naruto Uzumaki stood atop the Hokage Monument, his armor shining with the dawn. He looked down at his village, his sharp eyes able to make out faces even from the peak of the Monument. In his right hand, the Uru hammer, Mjolnir, dangled from its worn leather strap.

_Time to introduce the world to the new God of Thunder,_ Naruto thought with a smile. He raised his hammer toward the sky and vanished in a bolt of bright lightning.

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

Yeah, I know that I haven't updated anything in a few month. Sorry, but I wrote a original novel for National Novel Writing Month and, even though I didn't complete it for the actual competition, I have been working on that pretty hard and am seriously looking to get it published within the next few months.

This is mostly a filler chapter. I wanted to have a little bit of a reconnecting between Naruto and the Hokage and also wanted to introduce Jiraiya differently than in the canon. Jiraiya was always a source of great comic relief and I thought I would try to use him in that sort of capacity. I also hope the interaction between Naruto and the Kyuubi was pretty good. I haven't decided how I am going to be using the Fox in this fic, whether it will be a destructive evil monster, or if it will be an ally with Naruto.

Anyway, next time: THE CHUNIN EXAM FINALS! And no, they will not be anything like the canon!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

THUNDERER

Chapter V

The Chunin Exams Begin!

The sun rose over the Hokage Monument like it did every morning, spreading light over the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Already the village was stirring, already feeling the giddy anticipation for the day's events: The Chunin Exam Finals. It was a highly celebrated occasion, for shinobi and civilians alike. The shinobi all felt a certain amount of pride as they rose and dressed for the matchups, although those with family or even children fighting felt a pang of worry with their pride. For the civilians, greedy excitement filled them as the Finals brought in visitors from all over the land, all with pockets full of money and the need to spend it. And for the competitors, each felt very different.

In the Hyuuga Compound, Neji stared hatefully at a photograph of his extended family, his fists clenched in hatred driven by cruel twists of fate.

In the Akimichi household, Choji stuffed his mouth with a stack of western style pancakes, a dozen eggs, four doughnuts, and a large pot of coffee.

Shino Aburame sat quietly in a small greenhouse, listening to his family's hives buzz around him.

Ino stared into a mirror, brushing out her long hair. Her eyes, however, were hollow and haunted. A shiver raced up her spine as she pictured a pair of swirling red eyes.

Rock Lee woke up with a loud yawn, quickly dressed in his green training leotard, strapped on his weights, and raced out of his house to squeeze in one last training session.

A pair of raccoon-blacked eyes blinked in the morning sun. Outside the window a chirping bird was suddenly silenced by a tendril of sand.

In the Nara house, Shikamaru shut off his troublesome alarm clock and rolled back over, struggling to squeeze in a few more moments of sleep.

Dosu sharpened a pair of kunai against his sound bracer, relishing the sound of metal scraping over metal.

Inside the all but abandoned Uchiha District, an untouched bed sat amongst empty homes.

Naruto Uzumaki stood atop the Hokage Monument, his armor shining with the dawn. He looked down at his village, his sharp eyes able to make out faces even from the peak of the Monument. In his right hand, the Uru hammer, Mjolnir, dangled from its worn leather strap.

_Time to introduce the world to the new God of Thunder,_ Naruto thought with a smile. He raised his hammer toward the sky and vanished in a bolt of bright lightning. Seconds later, he appeared inside the still empty stadium. Naruto walked over the dirt and grass field, looked sadly at the single tree growing in the stadium, and stopped in the middle of the field.

_The field defiantly favors Earth and Fire users,_ Naruto mused._ Earth and Fire are the most common affinities in Konoha…how convenient for Sasuke and the others. There isn't even a small water source. This is blatant favoritism. I'll have to talk to Jiji about this later._

Naruto thought about storming off to find the Hokage right then and there, but decided to have a little fun instead. Drawing Mjolnir from his belt, Naruto spun the hammer over his head and slammed it against the ground. When the dust settled, a circular crater, several meters in diameter and depth, took up an entire corner of the field. Naruto spun Mjolnir in the air again, this time summoning a small raincloud above the crater. Naruto rose back into the air, passing through the rain with a happy smirk on his face.

-T-

As the sun rose higher in the morning sky, Konoha Stadium's stands began to fill with spectators, both non-competing Shinobi and civilian alike. The stadium was alive with people, all eager for the competition to begin. Shortly before the scheduled beginning, the competitors filed into the stadium amongst the roars of the crowd. Everyone cheered for their favorite competitor and whispers swept through the stadium as people realized that both Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki were not in the procession. While no one other than the rest of the Konoha Rookies gave a second thought to Naruto's absence, many were worried about Sasuke's absence and several civilians even went off to search for the boy.

"Where are they?" Kiba wondered from the stands. "I hope Naruto gets here soon; I wanted to see him smack Neji upside the head with that hammer of his."

"Neji deserves it after what he did to Hinata," Tenten agreed. "I can understand why Sasuke's late, after all he's with Kakashi-sensei, but it's not like Naruto to be late for anything, especially something so important."

"Naruto will be here," Hinata said softly as she walked down the bleachers. She still had several bandages poking out of her formal kimono. Her father and younger sister followed behind her; Hanabi looked bored and Hiashi his usual stoic and cold temperament.

"Hey, Hinata!" Kiba grinned. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling much better, thank you," Hinata answered with a slight bow. Behind her, Hanabi snorted.

"You're lucky Neji-kun held back. Your loss still shames the Hyuuga Main House."

"Jeez, lighten up, firecracker," Tenten muttered under her breath.

"You should stay out of Hyuuga business, Panda," Hanabi growled back, the veins in her eyes pulsing threateningly. Tenten's hand inched toward her kunai pouch, but Kiba jumped in-between the two girls before a full blown fight erupted in the bleachers.

"Easy, girls. This isn't the time or the place for a throw down. C'mon Tenten, the Kages are arriving."

The Hyuuga's walked past Kiba and Tenten—Hanabi had a very smug look on her face as walked past Tenten—and took their seats in a much more expensive and prestigious section of the bleachers that afforded them a much better view. The rest of the spectators rose and turned as the respected Kages entered the arena. The Hokage led the procession as the host and was followed closely by the Kazekage and Otokage. The three VIPs and their appointed bodyguards; one bodyguard for the Otokage, two for the Kazekage, and two ANBU for the Hokage; waved to the roaring crowd and took their seats in the appointed box high above the field.

"These are fine seats, Hokage-sama," the Kazekage commented as he sat deep in his cushioned chair. He wore his traditional Kage hat and robes, but also wore a mask that hid his face from view. Such a practice was common in Suna to protect one from the swirling sands, but in Konoha it looked very out of place, perhaps even rude. "You truly went out of your way to spoil us. These accommodations almost make up for the horrible bias against our villages in these Exams."

"Come now, Kazekage-sama," Sarutobi sighed. "I've heard these allegations for the last month. I would hope our mutual trust in the rules of the Chunin Exams would be enough to put down these silly accusations."

"Still, you cannot deny that Konoha is much more heavily represented than usual at this year's Exam," the Kazekage continued. "The Otokage and I made the long trip here with only having a single competitor left in the exams apiece."

"And for that I am overjoyed," Sarutobi responded. "Though it is a shame that more of your teams did not advance to the Finals, I am glad that you both still chose to join me."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama," the Otokage spoke for the first time. His voice was deep and low, a heavy bass that seemed strange with his diminutive stature. The Otokage was slim and almost demure in built and had a delicacy in his movements that was rarely seen in a male shinobi. "I must disagree with you, Kazekage-sama. Hokage-sama is one of the most entrusted and noble leaders to have ever graced the Elemental Villages. If he has deceived us and violated the sacred and ancient rules of the Chunin Exams, then I am Orochimaru's long lost daughter."

Sarutobi was curious about this new leader that had, apparently, started his own hidden village in Rice country. From first appearances, Sarutobi found him lacking. The man felt more like a worm than a leader.

"How can you defend him when the proof is staring you in the face?" the Kazekage shouted. "Both of our villages are practically missing from the Finals! Only one of your Genin and my son are the only ones from Suna or Oto that reached the finals."

"Exactly. We both only entered one team. Konoha entered many more. Hokage-sama clearly had more faith in his Genin pool than we did and allowed more teams to enter. It is only mathematical logic that Konoha would have more participants in the Exams. It is simple numbers."

"We both know that any one of our Shinobi is worth five of his!" the Kazekage growled angrily.

"Perhaps," Sarutobi smirked. "We shall see, won't we? Isn't that what the Exam finals are for? Look, it is time for the exams to begin."

Down on the arena floor, the competitors, minus Naruto and Sasuke, marched out in a single-file straight line. Beside them, Hayate stood ready to referee the Finals as he had the Preliminaries. Back up in the Kage box, the Kazekage started a new tirade.

"While you can speak about logic and the probability about the number of competitors from each village, no one can argue that having a Konoha Nin as referee isn't a conflict of interest and against the rules of the Exams!"

The Hokage was about to speak, but the Otokage held up a hand. "I'm afraid I must agree with him, Hokage-sama. The fact that there are so many Leaf Nin in the exams makes it unfair to have a Leaf Jonin officiating. I must agree that an impartial referee be assigned instead."

Sarutobi frowned, but nodded his head. "I understand. And if I was in your places, I feel that I would feel the same way. I believe that a team from Ame is still in Konoha recovering from their wounds in the Forest of Death. Would their Jonin sensei be an acceptable replacement referee?"

Both the Otokage and Kazekage nodded in agreement since Ame had no one left in the Exams. Sarutobi nodded to the ANBU to his right and the bodyguard vanished in a swirl of leaves. The ANBU reappeared beside Hayate, whispered the news into his ear, before vanishing again to get the new proctor. Hayate nodded and turned toward the participants.

"It seems that there is one last surprise in store for you," Hayate called out. "To maintain impartiality, a Jonin from a non-participating village will be proctoring the Finals. It's been fun guys, but this is my stop." He gave them a parting salute before he disappeared with the ANBU in a burst of leaves. Seconds later, another Jonin slowly walked out from inside the arena.

She was a small, young woman with straight blue hair framing her heart-shaped face. An origami flower, folded from a piece of yellow paper, decorated her hair. Her amber eyes swept over the participants, while the steel piercing beneath her lip drew their gazes.

"My name is Konan. The Hokage asked me to step in as the referee for today's matches. Since Ame has no Genin participating, I am the most impartial Jonin referee available. If any of you have a problem with that, speak now or keep your mouths shut and deal with it!" When none of the Genin objected, Konan smirked and continued. "It seems that two of your number can't follow simple directions and report on time. Have any of you seen candidates Naruto Uzumaki or Sasuke Uchiha?"

"None of us have seen Sasuke for a month," Choji reported. "Naruto did his training in Konoha; he should be here unless something bad happened to him."

"Sasuke is with Kakashi Hakate," Shikamaru added. "I wouldn't expect them for about three hours or so."

Konan frowned. "If it were up to me, I'd disqualify both of them right now. A Chunin should be more punctual than this. But the rules state that they have until their matches begin. So let's get this show on the road. Will Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyuuga remain here? The rest of you, get off my field and wait for your matches!"

The participants gave another look around for Naruto, shrugged, and trooped off the arena floor. Neji remained behind with Konan, a smug smirk on his face.

"Last call for Naruto Uzumaki!" Konan shouted across the arena. Neji's smirk grew as the seconds ticked by.

"He isn't coming," he said. "Apparently, the gaki is smarter than he thought. He realized that Fate had decreed that I would be the winner today. He was surprisingly wise to not even bother showing up."

"Looks like," Konan said and raised her hand to declare Neji the winner. Suddenly, a crack of thunder roared through the sky and a bolt of lightning speared into the arena floor! Both Neji and Konan jumped back into defensive stances; a dagger of paper appeared in Konan's hand while Neji drew a kunai from his pouch.

The flash dimmed to reveal Naruto resting on one knee in the center of the lightning impact. The morning sun gleamed off the concentric circles on his uniform and the wind ruffled his long blonde hair. He rose, Mjolnir in hand, and held the hammer towards Neji and Konan.

"Hold thy hand, proctor. I am here."

Konan looked at Naruto carefully, taking in his features as if committing them to memory. "You're late," she finally said. "Another few seconds and I would have disqualified you."

"You would've broken the rules, then, because I've been here a lot longer than anyone else," Naruto laughed. "It's a shame no one ever looks up."

"You are still nothing but a common braggart," Neji shouted, trying to make up for his embarrassment at jumping away from the lightning bolt. "Still trying to impress people, to make them notice you. You've merely changed from a bright orange jumpsuit and foolish pranks to fake lightning."

"There is nothing fake about it," Naruto growled back. "You will see for yourself."

"Fate has already declared me the winner here," Neji replied, his voice smug and confident. "This so called match is just the first formality of the day for me."

"I hope you two can do more than just talk," Konan groaned at the two boys' bickering. "The first match of the Chunin Exam Finals: Neji Hyuuga VS Naruto Uzumaki. BEGIN!"

Neji immediately dashed forward with impressive speed, Byakugan active, his fingers raised to strike Naruto's chakra points. Neji thrust forward, his bandage-wrapped hands a blur as they streaked towards Naruto's chest. Naruto slipped to the side, carefully dodging Neji's attacks. Neji grew angrier at the ease Naruto was dodging his strikes until he glimpsed down at Naruto's feet. Naruto was hovering two inches off the ground. Neji stopped his assault and just looked at Naruto.

"Took those all seeing eyes long enough to spot that," the blonde smirked. Neji narrowed his Byakugan and searched for the way Naruto was manipulating chakra through his feet.

_It must be a wind-based jutsu or a variation of the water-walking technique,_ Neji thought, but couldn't see a thing. There was no sign of any sort of technique or jutsu anywhere.

"It seems that you have a trick up your sleeve," Neji said and jumped away from Naruto. He held up his kunai and smiled. "Fortunately, I have some too."

He hurled the kunai at Naruto's head and followed with two more. Naruto easily dodged the kunai, but never saw the fourth hidden in the shadow of the third until it was right on top of him. Naruto ducked sideways, but the kunai still hit him in the arm. Neji's smile grew when he saw the kunai buried in Naruto's arm and it nearly cracked his face when he saw Naruto roughly pull it out of his own flesh.

Naruto ripped the kunai out of his bicep and held it up to Neji. The tip of the throwing blade was broken off. Naruto pinched his bicep and the tip of the kunai popped out of his flesh. Naruto flicked the tip back at Neji and wiped away the line of blood. The wound had already healed.

"Damn, you actually cut me for a second there. I probably should have seen that one coming too; that was the same trick Sasuke and I used against Zabuza back in Wave. We used a transformation jutsu and a Windmill Shuriken, just saying, but yours wasn't too bad either."

"I heard of the luck you had in Wave," Neji replied. "Fate spared you that day only to bring your defeat here today. Any other reason is nonsense; with your skills you should be buried back on that island like that nuke Nin Zabuza and his icy little weakling."

Naruto dropped Mjolnir where he stood and thunder growled overhead. "You never speak of them."

"I only speak the truth. They were weak and not worth the title they were given; especially if the likes of you were able to beat them."

"I said: You never speak of them!" roared Naruto and he rushed Neji, tackling him around the waist. Neji was momentarily taken back by the brutish tactics and they both fell to the ground. The two boys rolled in the dirt for a moment until Neji managed to kick Naruto off him. Naruto was back after him instantly, throwing wild, enraged blows at Neji. Now it was Neji's turn to dodge and retreat. Naruto was relentless in his attacks, never pausing, never hesitating in his assault. Unfortunately, Naruto's aggression also made him reckless. Neji quickly spotted openings in Naruto's attack and countered with a Juken strike to the chakra points on Naruto's left arm. Naruto staggered back, his arm limp from Neji's strikes. With Naruto's defenses compromised in a single move, Neji smirked as he went in for the kill.

"You are within my field of divination," he said as he spread his arms wide before rushing at Naruto. "Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"

Naruto winced in pain as Neji lashed out and speared his fingers into Naruto's chakra points.

"Two strikes! Four strikes! Eight strikes!" Neji called out each and every attack and, to Naruto, each strike felt like being stabbed with a kunai.

"Sixteen strikes! Thirty-two strikes! Sixty-four strikes!" Neji shouted and slammed both his palms into Naruto's chest, sending the blonde flying across the arena and into the solid stone wall.

"You may want to call the medics," Neji said to Konan as he walked toward the competitors' box. "The fool was always faded to lose. No one, especially not a fool with a silly hammer, can defy fate."

Konan was about to wave in the medical team standing by, when Mjolnir rose off the ground and flew to Naruto's raised hand. She watched, impressed that Naruto could still move after taking all sixty-four strikes from the Hyuuga.

"Is that all ye can muster?" Naruto asked as he struggled to walk forward. Neji's eyes narrowed in rage and he rushed at Naruto again. With a cry, he slammed the knife-edge of his hand down on the crown of Naruto's head! Naruto fell to the ground like a stone and did not move.

The entire stadium was stunned by the savagery of the blow, from the civilians to the Kages in their box. Many Konoha civilians showed horror on their faces, but secretly hid joyful smiles that the supposed curse of their village was dead. Inside the competitors' box, the Genin were all shocked!

"How…how could he?" Ino muttered softly. "N-Naruto…"

The other Leaf Genin were equally taken back and appalled by Neji's callous actions. They all knew he was an arrogant jerk for what he did to Hinata in the preliminaries, but

Konan did not speak; she had seen far worse things in Ame under Hanzo's regime. She silently gestured to the medical team and they walked out onto the field. They saw no need to run. They had just reached Naruto's body when the teen's fingers twitched around the handle of Mjolnir. The medics looked on in shock as Naruto slowly pulled himself up to this hands and knees. Blood dripped from the rapidly healing gash on his forehead and a small smile stretched Naruto's lips. His blue eyes flashed bright, like the night sky right after a bolt of lightning arced across the heavens.

"I said…is that all you can muster?" Naruto grinned and stood up. Neji froze; it had been shocking enough for Naruto to have survived the Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, but his follow-up blow to Naruto's head was strong enough to split stone!

"No…it's impossible!" Neji stammered and took a hesitant step backwards. "You can't defy Fate; it's inconceivable!"

"Impossible? Feh," scoffed Naruto. "Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given, than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is a challenge. Impossible is nothing!"

Naruto continued to walk toward Neji, his body lighting up with micro-sized sparks. Neji activated his Byakugan and stared at Naruto, completely dumbfounded.

_It's a good thing Pervy-Sage and I worked on building up my durability and strength instead of that Summoning Jutsu stuff he wanted to teach me. What good would a toad do here anyway; I can already create water and lightning is much cooler that a fire/oil combo attack. At least that god-like durability is starting to come in handy. And now for my next trick,_ Naruto thought with a fox-like smile. Naruto flexed every muscle in his body and concentrated. Suddenly, his closed chakra points were re-opening in tiny bursts of lightning. Neji shook off his amazement and narrowed his eyes at Naruto's midsection.

"Impressive, but you still do not defy Fate. You merely depend on another's chakra, not your own."

Naruto stopped and his eyes darted from Neji to his own midsection. "So you know, don't you?"

"All the Hyuuga do. Your stolen chakra stands out like a beacon to our eyes. We can see it without even trying."

"Stolen? You think that this is something I wanted?" Naruto growled and pointed to his stomach. "This is something that has caused me nothing but hardship and strife. And this is not **it's **power; this is the power I earned, the power, the legacy of Asgard!"

Naruto raised Mjolnir and held the mystical hammer in front of him. "My power is greater than anything ever sealed inside a newborn child. The power and knowledge of the Nine Realms dwells within my blood and Asgard does not bend to anything, especially Fate!"

Naruto whirled his hammer above his head and a fierce whirlwind blew across the arena. The winds slammed into Neji and swept him into the air. He crashed into the far wall of the arena, his body burst into a cloud of smoke, and a log fell to the ground.

_A Substitution!_ Naruto recognized and couldn't help but be impressed by Neji's reaction time. _He barely had a second to react to my attack. I guess I should probably lay off with the monologues before attacking. It never worked for any of the villains in Thor's memories._

Naruto searched the arena for any sign of Neji and suddenly felt a rush of chakra appear behind him. He turned and saw Neji waiting with a smirk on his face and hands stretched before and behind him.

"Eight Trigrams Palms Rotation!" Neji cried and spun in a tight circle. Chakra burst from every chakra point on Neji's body, creating a massive dome of rotating chakra. The dome slammed into Naruto and sent him sailing across the arena until he crashed into the far wall.

"What was that?" Ino asked from the competitors' box. Beside her, Lee watched the match closely, his fists clenched around the railing.

"That is the Hyuuga Rotation attack," he said, his voice low and serious. "The user released chakra from every point in their body and then spins rapidly to parry any attack. The spinning creates a shield of chakra and causes massive damage to anyone it touches. It is the most power and perfect defense, taught only to the Main House members."

"But I thought Neji was in the Branch House?"

"He is. It seems that Neji's genius has allowed him to surpass all expectations and that he taught himself somehow. That is why he is my eternal rival and why I must win so I can truly prove that I am a real Shinobi!" Lee roared.

On the other side of the competitor box, standing all alone, Gaara narrowed his eyes.

Inside the arena, Neji stopped spinning and looked toward Konan. "Now it is certainly over. No one can survive the Rotation attack so close. Fate has declared me the winner and him the loser. Make it official."

"Child, I will officially kill you if you tell me how to do my job again," Konan whispered softly enough for only Neji to hear. Konan took a small pleasure in seeing him blanch and back away slightly, but kept her composure and reminded herself that she had a job to do. She squinted toward the far wall and smiled. "You're famous—or rather over-hyped—Rotation didn't do as much as you think."

Neji was about to curse at Konan for insulting the ultimate Hyuuga jutsu until he saw Naruto climb out of the wall. The blonde had blood dripping from a cut in his right arm and from the corner of his right eye, but had a savage grin on his lips.

"Now that is more like it, villain!" Naruto laughed, the noise as savage as the smile. "My turn."

Naruto cocked his arm back and hurled Mjolnir at Neji. The hammer buried itself in Neji's stomach, driving the air out of him. With a thought, Naruto commanded the hammer skyward and lifted Neji into the air until he was high above the stadium.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Four clones burst into existence around Naruto and they leapt after Neji. The five Narutos floated in the air and arced toward the still immobilized Neji.

"Uzumaki Style: Asgard Combo!" The five Narutos sprang at Neji; Mjolnir releasing and returning to the real Naruto's hand. The first clone punched Neji in the face and toward the second clone. The second kicked Neji across the chest, cracking a rib and sending Neji arcing through the air. The third clone was waiting for him and brought his hands down in a hammer fist across Neji's back. Neji let out a scream of pain as clone number four snap-kicked Neji back toward the first.

The real Naruto hovered in the air, arms crossed, watching his clones volley Neji across the sky for a moment. Finally, he flew to the spot directly over the four clones and hefted Mjolnir over his head.

"Now!"

The fourth clone, instead of kicking Neji back toward the first clone, kicked Neji skyward to the waiting Naruto. Naruto reached up and caught the bruised and bleeding Hyuuga by the throat. He squeezed, and Neji, fighting unconsciousness, weakly tried to slap away Naruto's arm.

"Did ye see this coming, Hyuuga?" Naruto growled, the malice dripping off his slightly elongated canines. "Was this Fate? Was it Fate that you hang broken and beaten at my mercy? Did you see this, see thyself mere heartbeats from plummeting to your doom, wishing for my mercy when you showed your innocent cousin none?"

Neji stopped struggling and cast his gaze downward, using his Byakugan to see Hinata in the stands far below them. She was in the crowd, watching, and her pale eyes were ready to burst with held back tears.

"She is a far better person than you deserve to have within your family, worm," Naruto whispered as he pulled Neji closer. "Did you visit her in the hospital? Hmm? No, you say, not even once?" Naruto's grip tightened and Neji cried out. "Do ye know that I did, that I visited Hinata? Do ye know what she said?"

_-T-_

_Naruto walked quietly through the hospital until he reached Hinata's room, ignoring the countless dirty looks from the hospital staff and other patients. He gently knocked on Hinata's door before opening it._

"_Is this a bad time?" he asked when he saw the nurse standing beside Hinata's bed. The owner of said bed had turned bright red when she saw just who her visitor was._

"_No, I was just finishing changing Hinata-san's bandages," the nurse said cheerfully. Naruto felt a wave of relief as he realized she was one of the few citizens in Konoha that didn't view him as a monster. The nurse completed her work, bowed slightly to Hinata, and left. Naruto smiled as he stepped toward Hinata's bed. He reached out and handed her the small bouquet of wildflowers he had hidden behind his back._

"_How are you feeling?" he asked as Hinata sniffed the flowers._

"_I-I'm f-feeling bet-ter, thank you." Hinata stammered nervously. _

_Naruto smiled wider. "It gladdens me to hear you are recovering, Hinata-hime."_

'_Naruto just called me princess!' Hinata's mind sang out and she turned tomato red. Naruto stopped and looked at her in concern._

'_She looks like she's burning up!'_

"_Are you alright? Should I get the nurse?"_

"_No!' Hinata shouted a little too loudly. "I'm fine, Naruto-san. Please don't go."_

"_As you wish," Naruto smiled and sat down in the chair beside Hinata's bed. "I'll stay for as long as you'll allow. You can let go of my arm now."_

_Hinata looked down and saw that she had grabbed onto and was holding Naruto's forearm. She didn't even realize she had moved at all! With a squeak she let go and fidgeted nervously under her bed covers._

"_There's no need to be embarrassed, Hinata-hime."_

"_I'm so sorry!" Hinata immediately whispered, causing Naruto to laugh._

"_And there is no need to apologize," he continued, "especially for something I enjoyed." This caused Hinata to blush even brighter and she tried to bury herself in her covers. Naruto reached up and pulled the cover off Hinata's face._

"_Hinata-hime, there is no need to hide from me. I would never do you any harm. There was something I wished to speak to you about and I need you to pay attention."_

"_It's—it's about my match with Neji isn't it?" Hinata asked. "You are his opponent in the finals?" When Naruto nodded she paled._

"_What he did to you was despicable on too many levels to speak of. He deserves to be punished."_

"_But Naruto-kun, Neji is a prodigy; his skill with the Gentle Fist is nearly at a Jonin level! I don't want to see you get hurt because of me."_

"_I've recently grown quite strong myself," Naruto chuckled with a hint of arrogance. "Had a bit of a godly growth spurt you could say."_

'_I'll say!' Hinata thought, a flood of naughty thoughts and ideas swam through her mind as her eyes swept over Naruto's bare arms and shoulders. Fortunately, Naruto's voice snapped her out of her fantasies before they went any farther._

"_Hinata, I have to fight Neji; not just for the Exams but because of what he did to you. His actions cannot, will not go unpunished."_

"_Naruto-kun, will you…are you going to try to kill him?"_

"_I could," Naruto answered, his voice flat and low. He gazed down at Mjolnir and pondered the terrible power he could wield. "Is that what you want? I'd understand; he did his best; he would have killed you had I not intervened."_

"_NO!" Hinata shouted, terrified. "Neji-nee-san is tormented by the politics of our family. He's angry and lashed out at me because I represent everything he could have had, but didn't because my father was born just a few moments before his. My family got everything, his to serve. But when I was kidnapped and Neji's father died for mine, Neji's heart turned black and he sought to fight against his fate."_

"_So that's where that Fate Stick up his ass came from," Naruto muttered. Hinata giggled at his language and nodded._

"_I agree with Neji that our family division is wrong; that is why I didn't use the Caged Bird Seal in our preliminary match."_

"_That's right. You could have beaten him in a second if you did that."_

"_Yes, but I didn't want to hurt Neji like that. To me, that was more important that the Exam. I want to abolish the Seal, like Neji does, but where he defies the family and fights against Fate, I want to work from inside the family and change the Elder's mind without resorting to violence."_

"_You have a kind and noble heart, Hinata-hime, and I will aid you in any way I can. But Neji still needs to be punished for what he did."_

"_But Naruto…"_

-T-

"She argued with me for a half hour!" Naruto growled at Neji. "She made me swear upon my honor not to kill you like the dog you are."

"Even now, she insults me with her charity," Neji choked and spat at Naruto. Naruto cuffed him with an angry backhand.

"It is not charity," he shouted in Neji's face. "It is love. Even now, after all you said and did, she loves you and only wishes to help and alleviate your burden."

"And what would you know about bearing a burden? What do you know about being spat upon by Fate?"

"HA! For one with unfailing vision, you are as blind as a bat," Naruto laughed and pulled Neji close enough to whisper into his ear. "You have seen what is inside of me, you've seen the seal. You think you have a burden; fool, you have no idea what a true burden is. If I were a crueler man, I would give you just the barest glimpse of my burden and pain. But Hinata would be angrier at me than she is now. So remember this lesson as you recover in the hospital. And if you ever require it, I will gladly repeat the lesson."

With that, Naruto let go of Neji's throat and let Neji plummet back to the ground. The crowd, particularly a certain Hyuuga princess, winced and cried out when a loud crack echoed across the arena. Naruto floated to the ground as the dust settled, gave a satisfied look at the unhealthy angle of Neji's right arm and leg, and looked at the proctor.

"The winner is Naruto Uzumaki!" Konan announced loudly. A smatter of applause, mainly from the non-Konohan spectators, followed. A team of medics rushed out and carefully carted Neji away on a stretcher. One approached Naruto, but he waved her off. His injuries, while serious, were already healing and would be gone within the hour.

-T-

"That was certainly interesting," the Otokage said. "It is rare to see a wind user in Konoha, especially one so young."

"It is a shame my Temari did not reach the finals," the Kazekage commented. "Then you would see what a true wind user can do. But I do wish to know what kind of training Konoha stole from Suna to teach this boy."

"Naruto has always been a bit of a wildcard," the Hokage smiled. "And I would never endorse the theft of a village's training methods or techniques. Such things are inexcusable, don't you agree?"

"Of course," the Otokage agreed. "It is one of the oldest and most sacred of laws between villages. You really need to lighten up Kaze-kun. This stress will send you to an early grave."

The Kazekage turned away, arms crossed, and grumbled under his breath as the proctor announced the next match.

-T-

"Will Shino Aburame and Choji Akimichi please report to the floor?" Konan called. In the participants' area, Choji quickly made his way down in style, leaping from the stands in a bizarre sumo-like dive before crashing onto the ground. Despite his bravado, Choji looked nervously from side-to-side. Shino, showing traditional Aburame stoicism, was unreadable behind his calm walk, oversized coat, and dark glasses.

Before the battle could begin, Shino approached Choji with his right hand extended.

"Good luck, Choji-san," he offered. Choji was slightly taken back by his fellow Konoha-nin's act of sportsmanship.

"Thanks, Shino," he replied and shook the offered hand. "You too."

"How cute," Konan smirked. "But this isn't a game of paddy-cake. Shino Aburame VS Choji Akimichi…BEGIN!"

The two Genin leapt away from each other and landed in fighting stances. Choji was the first to act. He rushed at Shino like a bull. Shino leapt backwards as Choji's massive fist smashed into the ground, slightly cracking the arena floor. The entire crowd raised an eyebrow at the Akimichi heir's impressive strength. Even Naruto gave a slight nod to Choji's strength.

Shino continued to dodge, trying to tire Choji out. He knew the Akimichi could only maintain his assault for so long before they ran out of the necessary calories needed to maintain the pace. The Akimichi's sheer size made it difficult to keep such a frantic pace for a long time. Sure enough, after only three minutes of Choji smashing and Shino dodging, Choji began to show signs of exhaustion. He stopped chasing Shino and shrank back down to normal size, slightly thinner than before, and panted for breath.

"Now it is my turn," Shino said softly and raised his arms. Hundreds, perhaps, thousands, of insects flew out from under his sleeves. They formed a thick, black cloud over Shino's head before buzzing toward Choji.

Choji stared at the approaching cloud, unnerved by the shear amount of buzzing insects. Even though he had had a month to prepare for them, the sight of so many Kikaichu insects flying towards him was terrifying.

Choji reached a shaky hand into his shirt sleeve and popped a large pork dumpling into his mouth. Instantly feeling recharged, Choji grinned at the incoming swarm of insects.

"Partial Expansion Jutsu!" he shouted and his arms and hands grew to enormous proportions. "Sonic clap!"

Choji slammed his expanded hands together in a tremendous clap. His hands crushed hundred of Shino's Kikaichu; the resulting shockwave blew the rest away, killing the entirety of Shino's attack.

The crowd in the stands and all but Naruto in the competitors' area held their ears in pain from the thunderclap. Naruto chuckled at the effectiveness of Choji's attack.

_Hulk would have been impressed that his thunderclap has been passed on,_ Naruto thought. _According to Thor's memories, Banner was both a pain in the ass and a valued friend, depending on his mood that day. At least Choji lacks the gamma radiation and violent mood swings._

Shino watched his insects fall lifelessly to the ground with a straight face. Even though he was closer to these insects than he was his own family, Shino did not allow a single flicker of emotion mar his features. He simply pulled his hands back into his coat sleeves as Choji made a new hand seal.

"Human Meat Tank!" Choji shouted as he transformed into a massive ball of flesh and clothes. With a muffled roar, Choji rolled towards Shino at high speed. Shino remained where he was, watching impassively as Choji bore down on him. The crowd winced and turned away when the massive Akimichi rolled over Shino, crushing him.

But when Choji's momentum carried him past the spot where he squished Shino, all which remained of the Aburame was an empty coat, pants, and a pair of cracked sunglasses. While the crowd searched for any sign of Shino's remains—most looking at the back of Choji's clothes for a blood smear—Choji began to wobble and waver.

Suddenly, a swarm of Kikaichu ripped out of Choji's clothes, fat from dining on Choji's chakra, retreated toward the lone tree in the arena. Shino stepped out from behind it and allowed his insects to retreat back into his body.

Konan waited until the last of the Kikaichu insects had retreated back into Shino's body before she approached. While she had nothing to fear from the insects, they still gave her the creeps.

"Choji Akimichi is unable to continue. The winner is Shino Aburame!" she announced. There was a small smatter of applause, never smaller than for Naruto. Most of the crowd, both Shinobi and civilian, were too creped out from the swarms of insects.

"What—what happened?" Choji muttered weakly as he tried to sit up.

"A Bug Clone," Shino stated.

"Nice one," Choji smiled before closing his eyes and laying flat on the ground. "You don't happen to have any snacks on you, do ya?"

"No, I do not," Shino replied with the barest hint of a smile on his lips. "But it would be a pleasure to go with you to find some."

"Deal."

_Such camaraderie, _Konan thought as Shino helped Choji up and together they made their way out off the arena floor. _Reminds me of how we used to be._ Memories tried to overwhelm her, tried to overtake her, but she buried the dead memories where she thought they belonged.

"Sasuke Uchiha and Ino Yamanaka please report to the floor."

In the competitors' box, Ino paled and shook from the shadow she had stood in. She had barely been able to watch her own teammate's match from fear. But not fear for Choji, fear for herself.

"_Hello girls," Sasuke grinned as he approached. "You don't know how glad I am that you're both here. All this excitement has really given me a big appetite."_

"_Sasuke-kun, what happened to you?" asked Ino._

"_There's no need to be worried, Ino; no need to fear my new power. I finally have the way to avenge my clan and move on. Don't you want to help me revive my clan?" Sasuke asked and reached out to touch Ino. She shrunk away from his touch and his fingers grazed her broken arm._

"_Sasuke, my arm!" Ino wailed and tried to stumble backwards, but Sasuke was too fast. He lashed out and grabbed her by the front of her shirt. He pulled her close to him, ignoring her cries of pain and fear._

"_What's the matter, Ino? I thought you'd love to be this close to me. Isn't that what you and Sakura always fought about?"_

_Ino cringed and turned her head away from Sasuke's; his breath was foul and the dark marks continued to spread across his face._

The scene from the Forest of Death had played out in each and every one of Ino's nightmares during the month long break in the Exams. Ino could still remember the stink of Sasuke's breath and the feel of its foulness on her skin. Every waking thought was filled with dark marks and swirling red eyes.

She had barely slept since the Forest of Death; only when she was physically exhausted from training did she sleep, and then only fitfully. The lack of rest hindered her training and she still bore the deep purple circles beneath her eyes.

And now it was time to face her fear again; this time, without anyone beside her. Not her teammates, not Sakura, not Naruto…

Ino stopped her slow march toward the box exit and looked at her the blonde boy. Naruto noticed and quickly walked the distance between them. Naruto pulled Ino into a sudden, unexpected hug, startling her.

"One so fair should not fear," Naruto whispered in her ear. "You let that which is as far beneath you as the ground is beneath the heavens dominate your life. Let none hold dominion over thee and see thy fears flee before thee like vanquished foes. For you have more strength in thee than a host of warriors; you just need to face who you fear. And do not dread failure or consequence, for I say that Sasuke will tremble from my wrath should he attempt to do thee harm!"

Ino was taken back by Naruto's words. "Thanks," she said and gave him the smallest kiss on the cheek. Naruto's cheeks flushed brightly and he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. Her steps lighter from Naruto's encouragement, Ino made her way to the arena floor.

She nodded to Konan, impressed by the older woman's strength and style. To see such a powerful kunoichi, even one from another village, encouraged Ino more and she hoped for an opportunity to speak with Konan at another time.

Minutes passed and Sasuke remained absent. Throughout the stadium, the crowd was torn between restlessness and the desire to see their honored Uchiha compete. Even those in the Kage box couldn't hide their disapproval.

"Your Uchiha seems to lack courtesy," the Kazekage sneered at the Hokage. "You really must not be so lax with discipline, Hokage-sama. Why, just think how bad this must look to the clients? No one wants to hire a shinobi who can't appear on time for something so important."

"I agree," the Otokage said. "This is rather insulting. How much longer are you going to allow this farce to continue? Sasuke Uchiha should be disqualified and his sensei punished for this insubordination. Well, unless of course some real trouble occurred to delay them."

Sarutobi looked at the two Kages solemnly. _Damn you Sasuke and damn you Kakashi! Of all times to be late, this is the worst. Not only are we looking irresponsible and biased to the clients, but you are making me look weak for not being able to control my own shinobi as well._

Sarutobi stood up and raised his hand. Once the crowd took notice and settled, the Hokage's chakra enhanced voice carried over the entire stadium.

"Sasuke Uchiha has failed to report within the allotted time and is hereby disqualified from the Chunin Exams without any hope of promotion! A full investigation will be performed to determine if criminal charges are deemed necessary. Ino Yamanaka will advance to the next round!"

Ino let out an audible sigh of relief; even though Naruto had eased her fears of facing Sasuke, they had not been completely exorcised from her mind. She turned and began the march back to the competitors' box. She shrugged toward Naruto and saw him shake his head.

"There will be another time, Ino," he said. "You will have to face him someday. But you're Exams are not over yet."

Ino gulped, nodded, and went back to find a seat. _Naruto's right. Now I'm going to have to face either Lee or that Gaara kid. Both of them are in a league of their own; I'm going to need one heck of a plan to beat them._

"Will Rock Lee and Gaara of the Sand report?" Konan called. She looked bored and was tired. Other than Naruto's first match, the Exams had been quite unimpressive in her eyes.

Gaara appeared in a cloud of swirling sands, his raccoon eyes looking even more tired than Konan's bored orbs.

"Dynamic Entry!" Lee shouted and leapt from the competitors' box. Lee shot through the air in a green blur, twirled in the sunlight, and landed in a flashy Taijutsu pose with one leg high in the air and his arms spread out like wings. Konan did a double take when she saw the spandex-clad Genin and could have sworn she saw a sunrise just behind him.

"Kai," she whispered to break the Genjutsu, but nothing happened. A flutter of panic filled her as she tried again, and again.

_Why won't it go away?_ she wondered. _Am I going insane?_

"Oh dear," Sarutobi muttered as he watched Konan try over and over to break the supposed 'sunset' Genjutsu. He looked to his companions in the Kage booth and saw them trying to break it as well. He chuckled slightly to himself and nodded to one of the hidden ANBU.

Seconds later, Hayate appeared beside Konan and approached the Ame-nin cautiously, making enough noise for her to know he was there.

"It isn't a Genjutsu. We've been studying it for years, but Lee and his sensei seem to generate at it unconsciously. We still haven't figured out a way to break it. The best thing to do is just start the match. Once Lee begins fighting, it should go away," Hayate whispered.

Konan sighed and felt her body and mind relax. She nodded her thanks to Hayate, who vanished as quickly as he had appeared. Konan looked at Lee, trying her hardest not to be drawn into the freakish sunset he was projecting, and looked at Gaara.

"Rock Lee VS Gaara of the Desert. Fight!"

"Yosh!" cried Lee as he leapt into action. He sprang at Gaara and launched a mighty kick. "Leaf Hurricane!"

Lee's kick landed against a wave of hardened sand that had appeared to defend Gaara. Lee saw the sand move to grab hold of his leg and he quickly jumped back. Lee looked at Gaara in shock. The Suna Nin had not moved at all!

"What a wonderful technique!" Lee exclaimed. "Your control over the sand is most masterful. It is truly an honor to test my skills against you."

"Shut. Up," Gaara replied, his voice rude, cold, and bored. With a thought, he shot tendrils of sand at Lee, hoping to ensnare him and crush him like he did to Yoroi in the preliminaries. Lee jumped away from the tendril and cart wheeled toward the far end of the arena, trying to determine Gaara's maximum range. Gaara smirked.

"Running is useless. There is nowhere you can go where I will not find you. I will prove my existence with your blood!"

Lee ran up the arena wall; not using chakra, just pure speed; and used the wall as a springboard to leap back toward Gaara. He hurled a handful of shuriken at Gaara to further test his defenses. Another wave of sand, independent from the tendrils that still chased after Lee, blocked the shurikens from ever getting close to Gaara. A sadistic smile crept over Gaara's lips.

"Sand Shuriken!" he called and hurled discs of hardened sand at Lee. Lee's eyes grew wide; the sand discs had razor-sharp points and were moving just as fast as anything Tenten had ever thrown at Lee in training. He twisted to avoid the projectiles, but Lee never saw the new tentacle of sand until it was already wrapped around his ankle.

"Now I've got you!" Gaara shouted and cracked the tentacle like a whip, slamming Lee into the ground and throwing him into the arena wall. Lee hit the wall at high velocity and broke through the wall as if it was made of paper, not stone. The sand tentacle returned to Gaara's feet and formed into a long spear. Gaara waited, poised like a serpent waiting to strike.

Buried beneath chunks of wall, Lee struggled to free himself. Still shrouded in dust, Lee could barely see Gaara laying in wait.

_Why isn't he following up his attack? _ _I'm helpless here, why is he waiting? _Lee wondered. After a second, it dawned upon him. _He waited until Yoroi attacked before killing him…he's a counter-attacker. He'll wait for me to hit that shield of his and when I get stuck in that sand, he'll destroy me. Gaara is a truly marvelous shinobi and a very worthy adversary!_

Lee smiled slightly as he finished freeing himself from the rubble, but he didn't leave. Still shaded by the cloud of dust, Lee stood up and stared at Gaara.

"You are indeed a worthy opponent; perhaps even more worthy than your sister was," Lee called across the arena. "I showed her a warrior's respect; it would go against my nindo to do any less for you."

Up in the stands, sitting beside Kankuro and their sensei Baki, Temari groaned and blushed from the embarrassment. Kankuro snickered until Temari hit him hard in the face. While he complained of her smearing his 'war paint', Baki wisely stayed out of it and went back to reading a new copy of Icha Icha.

Down on the arena floor, Gaara was not amused. "You talk too much."

"You are not the first person to tell me that," Lee admitted, "but it would be un-youthful of me not to display my youthful exuberance all the time!"

"I'm starting to prefer listening to mother's voice more than yours," Gaara said, his tone slightly afraid at what he was saying. "And she's telling me to spill your blood in the sands! Sand Tsunami!"

Gaara slammed his hands into the ground beneath him and a pulse of chakra raced through the ground. Dirt and sand rose out of the ground and formed in the shape of an immense wave. The wave grew as Gaara ground the rocks and minerals in the earth into more, harder sand. Lee was amazed by the feat.

"You are…genius…prodigy…monster…"

"Now die!" Gaara shouted and the wave rushed across the arena. Konan had to leap high into the air to avoid being swept away as the wave raced for Lee.

"Move Lee!" Guy and Tenten shouted as one from the stands. Lee snapped out of his stupor just in the nick of time. In one swift move, Lee pulled off his leg weights and threw them at the oncoming wave.

Gaara's shaded eyes burst wide when he saw the sets of weights rip through the dense sand and fly at him! Suddenly, Gaara did something he never did in battle before.

He dodged!

Gaara moved out of the way at the last second; the weights passed just to the right of his face and slammed into the far wall of the arena.

_Nothing has ever broken through my sand before,_ Gaara thought in shock. While Gaara was still trying to understand what just happened, Lee made his move.

Lee leapt through the hole his weights made in the sand wave and unleashed a three punch combo on Gaara's face and stomach. The blows hit Gaara's sand armor and knocked Gaara down to one knee. The wave of sand wavered and broke apart as Gaara lost focus and his chakra control slipped.

Lee appeared behind Gaara and axe-kicked Gaara's back. The blow shattered the sand armor and Gaara crashed to the ground. Lee tried to continue his assault with a punch aimed for Gaara's temple, but the blow never connected. Lee looked down and saw a thick tentacle of sand wrapped around his wrist. He struggled to free himself, but the sand's grip was stronger.

"You increased your weights," Gaara said in cold monotone, "but you are still not fast enough. Sand Coffin!"

Lee screamed in pain as Gaara's sand crushed the bones of his wrist, shattering them. Lee curled his legs beneath him and pushed with all his considerable might, leaping away and finally breaking the sand's hold on him. He landed on the far side of the field, clutching his broken arm close to his body.

_This is not good, _Lee thought. _Even with all the training I did, I am still not fast enough to escape his sand attacks. He is truly amazing, using something as simple as sand for such powerful attacks and defense._

Konan could see the frustration mixed with fear on Lee's face. "Do you wish to continue?" she asked.

"Of course I want to continue!" Lee uncharacteristically bellowed, sounding more like a wild beast than a teen. "There are two hundred and six bones in my body. Do you think that I will give up after only losing two of them? I will never stop!"

Lee hunched down, coiling his body, and clenching both fists, despite his injury. He screamed as his entire body seized, every muscle tensed and flexed, every nerve firing wildly. Lee stared directly at Gaara, a pained smile stretched across his lips and said: "Kaimon…kai!"

Every shinobi in the arena drew in a sharp breath of shock. Up in the Kage booth, the Otokage and Kazekage turned to the Hokage in complete disbelief.

"Hokage-sama, Sarutobi! This is outrageous! How can you allow your Jonin Sensei's to teach a mere Genin how to open the Celestial Gates?" the Kazekage yelled. "This is unheard of!"

"I believe this Rock Lee is the first Genin in history to open the first gate like this," the Otokage added. "You allow your shinobi to take far too dangerous risks! While the power he gains is incredible, the risks are monumental!"

"Lee knows the risks," the Hokage said grimly, remembering the tongue-lashing he gave Guy the month before when he reported to the Hokage that he was teaching Lee how to open the gates and listening to Guy's reasoning.

"_How could you be so reckless and irresponsible?" Sarutobi shouted at Guy, slamming his fist upon his desk. "Just what were you thinking?"_

"_Respectfully, Hokage-sama, but you don't know enough to judge the situation," Guy replied._

"_Mind what you say, Guy. Despite your relationship with the boy, remember that I am still your leader."_

"_What I meant, Hokage-sama, is that you do not know enough about Lee. Lee has not talent for Ninjutsu or Genjutsu and he cannot use them. However, his Taijutsu is second only to Neji Hyuuga in his age group and I believe that someday he will even surpass me in mastery of Taijutsu!"_

"_That is a pretty bold claim to make, Guy," Sarutobi said before frowning. "But that still doesn't explain why you taught him something as dangerous as the gates!"_

"_Lee will never stop. Every day he trains until his body breaks and his muscles rip," Guy explained. "Every attempt I've made to get him to properly rest or at least not train like a madman possessed, has failed. Nothing short of tying him to a hospital bed with heavy chains will slow him down. It was only a matter of time before he opened the first gate accidentally. I felt it would be better for Lee to learn properly and under my supervision than to experiment on his own."_

_Sarutobi thought for a moment then nodded. "Very well. You were right to try to help the boy. Just make sure he doesn't go overboard and open more than the first gate."_

_Guy suddenly looked very interested in studying the floor. Sarutobi saw through the guise immediately._

"_Just how many gates can Lee open, Guy?"_

Sarutobi looked back down at the arena and smiled, much more confidently this time. "Keep your eyes trained on the arena floor, gentlemen. We are in for quite a show."

The Kazekage and Otokage looked at each other, both slightly confused, until they heard Lee's now deeper voice ring through the air.

"Kyumon…Kai! Seimon…Kai!"

Lee's skin turned blood red as his blood flowed faster through his veins. His muscles bulged to twice their original size, nearly tearing apart Lee's tight spandex outfit (fortunately for the eyes and moral sanity of the spectators, the spandex stretched appropriately and nothing was revealed). Greenish-white bands of chakra swirled around Lee's body and, from across the arena, Gaara could feel wave after wave of power erupt off of Lee.

Lee gasped for breath, his mind reeling from massive release of strength, speed, and energy. His broken wrist no longer hurt; it was a mere inconvenience in his current state, the gate of healing had temporarily alleviated the pain.

"Now I will show you what the Springtime of Youth truly is!" shouted Lee and he vanished. Gaara searched for a sign of the green-clad Genin, but there was not a single trace to be found. Gaara's sand flared to life behind him, but there was nothing there but a green after image! The sand continued to move all on its own, but Gaara still could not see any sign of Lee.

Lee grit his teeth in frustration. _Even after opening the third gate, I still cannot penetrate his defenses! The only reason I landed a hit before was because I used my weights as a distraction. I am very sorry, Guy-sensei, but I must push myself even farther, even though you warned me of the great dangers involved. If these are to be my last moments as a Shinobi, I will make them worth remembrance!_

Lee stopped and stood still in front of Gaara. The Suna jinchūriki narrowed his sleepless eyes at Lee, wondering what trick the Leaf Nin was going to pull from out his spandex sleeve next.

"Shomon…kai!"

The fourth gate opened and a shockwave of raw chakra swept across the arena. Lee's body swelled even more, the veins in his muscles pushed out and were visible through his green spandex. Gaara felt grains of sand being ripped away from his armor and cast into the wind from the sheer power Lee was generating.

Lee dashed forward. His body wasn't even a green blur anymore; one moment he was there, gathering his strength, and the next he was gone. Half a second later, Gaara's head rocked back and his body was lifted off the ground from a blow to the chin. A second and third blow followed until Gaara was hovering ten feet off the ground. Lee reappeared behind him, his eyes wide and pupil-less. He raised his hands and slammed them down across the back of Gaara's neck. Gaara let out a scream as he plummeted back to earth and skipped across the arena floor.

Lee landed roughly. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he bit his lip to stifle the cry of pain. _My body cannot take much more of this,_ he worried. _Hopefully, that last attack finished him off._

Lee looked across the arena with hope in his tired heart and brightened when he saw a bloody smear on the broken rocks. He stepped once and his left knee gave out in a crunch of cartilage. Lee fell, catching himself with one arm. He hobbled back to a vertical base and looked down at Gaara.

Gaara pulled himself out of the sandy rubble and felt…pain. He looked down and saw a line of blood dripping onto the ground. His head felt…odd. Gaara reached up and gently brushed aside the remains of his sand armor and felt something warm and sticky on his fingers. He pulled his hand back and saw nothing but red.

"Blood…my blood? Is this my blood?" Gaara cried out. His tired eyes grew fantastically wide and his hand shook violently. "I'll kill you!"

Gaara's gourd dissolved and swirled around the entire arena like a blinding sandstorm. Lee and Konan were forced to shield their eyes from the whirling sands. When the sands finally stopped, Gaara was encased in a solid ball of sand and a large eye, made entirely of polished sand, hung high above him.

"What kind of jutsu is this?" Lee wondered out loud. Curious, but tempered with caution, he reached into his pouch and hurled a kunai at Gaara. The kunai only penetrated half an inch into the reinforced sand. A tendril of sand reached out like a finger and, after removing the kunai, spun it by its ring. The finger of sand twirled the kunai twice before another tendril appeared, grabbed the blade and snapped it in half.

Lee was shocked and a little terrified. _I have never seen something snap a kunai so easily before. And that was one of Tenten's kunai! Oh, no, she is going to kill me for letting it get broken._ Lee felt a pulse of killing intent from the stands and suddenly he wasn't only afraid of Gaara…

Meanwhile, Gaara lurked inside his sand shield, muttering and holding his hands in a single seal. A thin trail of sand connected the third eye hovering outside his shield to his real eyes, allowing him to keep close watch on Lee. And when he saw Lee keeping his weight off his left leg, he narrowed all three of his eyes.

Sand leapt from the shield faster than before. Lee jumped backward just in time to avoid the attack, but landing on his legs caused a fresh wave of pain to shoot up his leg. Gaara noticed Lee's barely visible grimace and launched new tentacles of sand toward Lee. Each attack was just fast enough to force Lee to dodge and each one came faster than the last.

_He is purposely trying to wear out my body, _Lee realized. _He knows I cannot stand here and just allow his attacks to crush me, but I cannot keep dodging like this either. I must go back on the offensive. But my body is giving out on me…there is only one choice left._

Lee landed as far away from Gaara as he could and crossed his arms in a great X in front of his chest. Gaara's sand slammed into Lee's guard, but Lee grit his teeth and ignored the sand-blasting pain. "Tomon…kai!"

The fifth gate opened in a roar of chakra and Lee's body actually rose off the ground. He hovered two inches off the arena floor and, when he darted forward, his body glowed green with the released chakra.

"This is it!" Lee shouted as he charged Gaara. "My final attack! Green Beast Barrage!"

Lee leapt forward, fists held out in front of him, his chakra surrounding and encasing him in a bullet of chakra. Gaara responded to Lee's charge by forming an array of sharp spikes stabbing outward from his shield, but this did not deter Lee at all. With a roar, Lee's chakra bullet glowed brighter and flew even faster.

Lee's bullet crashed into Gaara's ultimate defense and exploded in a blast of green chakra and swirling sand. The blast was bright enough to blind the spectators momentarily and shook the arena down to its foundations.

When the dust and bright glow finally cleared, both Lee and Gaara were lying on the ground. Both were battered, bruised, and bleeding; Lee, however, looked to be in worse shape. His left leg, already injured, was bent at an unnatural angle and a portion of the spandex was bulged from the broken bone pressing into the skin underneath. Gaara's sand armor was shattered and falling off his pale skin in chunks and pieces. Blood poured from his head wound and from a multitude of scraps and cuts all over his body.

Slowly, Lee raised his head and looked at Gaara through his one un-swollen eye. _I hope that finished off Gaara; my body is done for, I have nothing left._

Lee let out a mental groan when he saw Gaara start to rise to one knee. Lee tried to do the same, to at least try to put up an attempt at defense. Lee managed to prop himself up on his left arm before his elbow hyper-extended and he dropped back to the ground in pain. A sadistic smirk crossed Gaara's lips and he pointed a single finger at Lee. A finger of sand wrapped around Lee's injured leg and pulled viciously. Lee screamed in pain and Konan began to step toward the pair, ready to step in if she needed to.

Gaara raised his hand and the sand lifted Lee into the air by his ankle. Gaara slowly raised his other hand, pointing at Lee's chest. A spear of sand formed in midair. Gaara took his time aiming…

Suddenly a swirl of leaves filled the arena, interrupting and blowing back Gaara, forcing him to drop Lee. Lee hit the ground already unconscious. Konan brushed a leaf out of her hair and glared at the two individuals now standing back to back in-between Lee and Gaara.

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?" she snarled.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Kakashi said and eye-smiled. He stood beside Sasuke, who wore black and stood with his arms crossed arrogantly across his chest. "Are we late?"

Konan's right eye twitched dangerously and she was sorely tempted to pull a piece of paper from her sleeve and dismember the arrogant Jonin where he stood.

"Not only have you have interrupted an official match, but for nothing. He," she snapped and pointed at Sasuke, "has been officially disqualified."

"What?" Sasuke roared, his arrogance replaced by spoiled anger. "How dare you? What rights do you, a mere Ame peasant, a woman no less, have to disqualify an Uchiha?"

Konan's eyes twitched again and she pictured a blade of paper slicing through Sasuke's neck and becoming an umbrella to shield her from the fountain of blood. She pushed this happy thought out of her mind and pointed to the Kage booth. "I didn't. They did."

Sasuke spun and flashed his Sharingan at the Kages. "I demand to compete! These people came here to see the elite fight, not this spandex-clad rabble. I demand to be promoted!"

Up in the Kage booth, Sarutobi seethed and saw red. His armrests cracked and splintered beneath his furious grip. Beside him, the Otokage had a similar reaction. Killing intent swelled off the Hidden Sound Kage, but the Kazekage let out a soft giggle. When Sarutobi heard it, he turned and stared at the veiled Kazekage.

"Are you enjoying this spectacle?" Sarutobi growled, barely containing the anger in his voice. The Kazekage laughed again.

"I am indeed," he said. "Such audacity is rarely seen in a shinobi so young. You should be proud of the Uchiha's desire to fight. Surely this is an example of the 'Will of Fire' you Leaf shinobi are so proud of."

Sarutobi slammed his fist down upon his armrest, breaking it with a _snap._ "The 'Will of Fire' is not something one jests about, Kazekage. Nor among its tenets is a lack of respect to ones superiors or habitual tardiness! ANBU! Take Sasuke and Kakashi into custody for insubordination and manor unbecoming of a Leaf Shinobi!"

Groans and curses filled the arena as those who came to see the last loyal Uchiha fight expressed their disappointment; although all the foreign dignitaries, clients, and shinobi cheered and clapped appropriately for the Hokage's decision. But of everyone in the arena, Sasuke was the most upset.

"How dare you? I demand to fight!" Sasuke roared and darted at Gaara. He swung and tried to punch Gaara, but Gaara still had enough control over the sand to intercept the blow. The sand wrapped around Sasuke's wrist, Gaara clearly trying to repeat his success with Lee. Gaara made a closed fist, but Sasuke tore free before Gaara's sand could crush his wrist.

"You're too weak," Sasuke sneered and dodged a wave of sand. "Heh, sloppy. I don't even need my Sharingan to avoid your attacks."

Gaara grit his teeth in frustration. He was hurt; he _never_ gets hurt. Pain flooded his body and clouded his mind, making it hard to focus.

_Mother…mother, where are you mother? They hurt me mother, make them hurt! I'll give you their blood, mother. Please, prove my existence!_

Gaara let out a scream and more sand was summoned to his side. His sand armor reformed, but thicker this time, visible, and bulky. The first traces of bluish veins appeared in the sand and Gaara's eyes darkened in color.

Sasuke narrowed his red eyes. Already, a squad of ANBU had landed on the arena floor and was cautiously approaching. Kakashi had moved to intercept; Sasuke hoped the Jonin would prove he was worth more than just a jutsu encyclopedia for him and stall the ANBU long enough for him to prove he deserved to be promoted.

"You're just a stepping stone on my path to vengeance," he told Gaara and began to flash through hand seals. "No amount of armor can stop me from destroying you."

Sasuke gripped his left wrist and held it away from his body. His chakra began to focus in his hand, growing visible and cackling like lightning.

Up in the stands, Guy was being held back by Asuma, Kurenai, Anko, and Iruka to keep from rescuing his protégé. When he saw Sasuke prepare his new attack, he stopped struggling and growled: "How dare Kakashi teach him that jutsu? How could he be so careless and reckless?"

"Um, you're one to talk, Guy," Asuma sighed. "How can you say what another sensei teaches his student after you taught Lee how to open the gates?"

"Lee would have opened the gates on his own," Guy justified, "and, as you can see, they have limits. But for Kakashi to teach _this,_ it's completely senseless!"

"Just what's the big deal?" Anko asked. "All he's doing is focusing his chakra into his hand. The only jutsu that require someone to do that are medical jutsu and Taijutsu strikes like Tsunade does."

"There is another," Guy said ominously. "It is a one-hit-one-kill assassination jutsu that requires incredibly high speeds to pull off. The speed creates a form of tunnel vision, but the Sharingan eliminates that, making it even deadlier. It is the only jutsu that Kakashi didn't copy with his Sharingan, his sole original jutsu. He created it while trying to master the Yondaime's Rasengan; they say he used it to cut a lightning bolt in half. That's how it got its name. Chidori, the lightning cutter of a thousand chirping birds."

Sasuke's chakra grew brighter and hotter and a chorus of one thousand chirping birds filled the arena. "Chidori!" he shouted and dashed towards Gaara, the Chidori's wake burning a furrow in the ground. Gaara threw his hands in front of him, commanding a swarm of sand tendrils and spikes to intercept Sasuke.

To Sasuke's Sharingan, each tendril and spike looked like it was moving in slow motion. _This is too easy,_ he thought as he slipped through Gaara's defenses and thrust his attack home. The Chidori ripped through Gaara's sand armor, skin, flesh, and bone with equal ease and Gaara let out a fresh wail of horrible pain. Sasuke remained still for a moment, his hand still buried up to the wrist in Gaara's stomach. With a sickening _squelch_, he removed his hand and a cascade of blood stained the sand at Gaara's feet.

Sasuke smirks as he raises his hand to finish Gaara off, but something grabs his upraised wrist. He looks to see a thick band of sand holding onto him. Gaara is standing behind him; he is panting heavily, but the wound in his stomach is gone. Sasuke turns back to see the Gaara he attacked crumble into a small pile of sand.

_A sand clone? He's cleverer than I thought,_ Sasuke thought. _He used those tendrils and spikes to block his real moves from my Sharingan._

"Cute trick," he said, arrogantly cutting himself free with a kunai. "Is that all you can do?"

"Mother…mother…wants to…meet you," Gaara stammered, his sand armor still growing. "She wants to…taste…Uchiha blood!"

With a roar, Gaara's left arm and right leg thickened and grew to enormous proportions of sand, claws, and blue veins. Sand crept up his shoulder and spread over the left side of Gaara's face. When it reached his eye, the whites turned black and the iris gold; when it reached the corner of his mouth, it stretched into a grin filled with large, triangular teeth. The first beginnings of a tail appeared on his hip.

"Enough of this!" Konan yelled and made her presence known with a terrifying pulse of chakra. "I'm tired of this bullshit and of the Leaf for letting it get this far. The Hokage should be ashamed his ANBU can be stalled by just one Jonin." She glared at Kakashi and the sheepish looking ANBU. Konan walked calmly toward Gaara, heedless of the obvious transformation the Suna Genin was experiencing.

"This match is over! Gaara of the Desert is the winner, due to disqualification! So you calm the hell down," she shouted and pointed at Gaara, "and you, surrender now or I will end you where you stand!" she threatened Sasuke.

The match finally officially over, Guy knocked aside his comrades and leapt into the arena. He carefully scooped up the unconscious Lee and rushed him to the medical tents. But despite the pulse of chakra, neither Sasuke nor Gaara showed any signs of backing down, nor did the embarrassed ANBU show any more initiative to arrest Sasuke or Kakashi. Konan was ready to level the entire village in frustration and rage toward the Leaf.

Kakashi put his hand on Sasuke's shoulder, stopping him from retaliating toward Konan, but Gaara had no outside influence to calm him down. He ripped past Konan and waved his transformed arm at Sasuke. The sudden blow caught Sasuke by surprise and knocked him and Kakashi out of the arena and into the stands.

In the Kage booth, Sarutobi was already out of his seat, ready to stop Gaara from harming anymore people; although he was internally debating whether it would be easier to just let the insane Genin devour Sasuke and Kakashi; and narrowly avoided the kunai aimed for his back. He spun around and saw the Kazekage holding said kunai, a dark look in his veiled eyes. Behind him, the Otokage made a hand seal and Sarutobi felt the beginnings of a massive Genjutsu spread over the entire stadium. A quick pulse of chakra freed him from its effects, but Sarutobi saw much of the stadium fall into a deep sleep.

"What is going on?" he demanded to know as he turned toward the Kazekage.

"This is the end, Hokage-sama," the Kazekage purred. "The end of the Hidden Leaf Village!"

The Otokage and Kazekage's bodyguards leapt to action, cutting down Sarutobi's ANBU before they could react. One of the Otokage's bodyguards split in two, revealing two Shinobi where there had only been one. Alongside the Kazekage's bodyguards, they leapt to the four corners of the Kage box and destroyed the pavilion roof. Tossing aside their disguises, the now exposed and infamous Sound Four began making hand seals in unison.

"Ninja Art: Four Flames Barrier!" they shouted together. Fiery red chakra exploded from their bodies, forming two barriers around the entire Kage Box and high into the sky, topped with a barrier roof. The first barrier was in front of the Four to keep anyone from attacking them; the second barrier was behind them to keep the Kages from escaping.

However, the Otokage and Kazekage had no interest in escaping, only in death and destruction. The Hokage took it all in stride, showing more curiosity in the barrier than in the two Kages trapped inside with him. He casually drew a shuriken from inside his sleeve and tossed it at the barrier. The metal disc fizzled against the barrier and burst into flames hot enough to turn the steel to ash.

"I'm actually impressed, Orochimaru. You've actually developed a fairly decent jutsu here," Sarutobi said appreciatively. When he saw the Kazekage's right eyebrow twitch, Sarutobi smirked. "Yes, I know that's you, Orochimaru. I was wondering how long I was going have to sit beside your stink before you showed your true colors."

"Oh, Sarutobi-sensei," Orochimaru chuckled. "You always were so clever. What gave it away: did I say something familiar, make a gesture, wear the wrong aftershave?"

"You're subordinate told me actually," Sarutobi reveled. "You remember Kin Tsuchi, don't you? Sasuke Uchiha set her on fire during the preliminaries. It's amazing what an inexperienced Shinobi will say under pain medication, especially when she has been abused and suffered so much under your short tutelage and her so-called teammates."

"Hmm, I thought the little whore was dead. I suppose I have one more loose end to tie up today," Orochimaru grumbled as he pulled off his robes, veil, and Kage hat. Beneath the baggy robe was the petite, but impressively curvy body of a young woman and behind the veil was a beautiful face with pale skin, red lips, and long black tresses of hair. The only thing that marked this woman as Orochimaru was her eyes: yellow with a serpentine slits for pupils. Sarutobi looked at his former student and felt a wave of repulsion crawl up his spine.

"You always did enjoy stealing Tsunade's underwear," he said, mocking Orochimaru. "I always thought you were a pervert like Jiraiya; I never suspected you were jealous of Tsunade's…features. I suppose this explains why you always rejected her advances."

"She was just angry that I looked better in her panties than she did," Orochimaru sneered and struck what he deemed as a sexy pose. Behind Orochimaru, the Otokage vomited from beneath his veil. Sarutobi gagged at the smell and struggled not to get sick himself.

"What's the matter with you?" Orochimaru whirled on his accomplice.

"Sorry, but that's a horrible mental image," the Otokage burped, trying to scrub the idea of Orochimaru's true form with Tsunade's legendary curves dressed in a tight black bra and matching lace thong. He wished there was a Yamanaka handy to wipe his memory clean, hopefully with bleach. Orochimaru shrugged and stepped away from the still retching Otokage.

"Who is your accomplice?" the Hokage asked. "I know you're the real Otokage; only one of your arrogance would start his own hidden village out of spite and jealousy."

"Perhaps if you appreciated my genius more than such measures could have been awarded," Orochimaru countered.

"Your sickness, you mean. Murdering and experimenting on innocents is not genius."

"Your opinion."

"I assume the Kazekage is a late victim?"

"Of course. He was against my little invasion plan; he merely wanted to use Gaara to embarrass the Leaf in the Exams, where as my plans are much more grandiose," Orochimaru chuckled and reached into his robe and fired a flare into the air, signaling the remainder of his forces.

-T-

Across Konoha, in the outskirts outside the village's walls, a group of Oto Chunin began chanting around a summoning seal. Inside the seal, Misumi Tsurgui and Zaku were bound and gagged. Their skin was covered in cuts and bruises and their eyes were wide in fear.

The chanting grew louder and smoke rose out of the seal. The smoke crawled and wormed toward the two tied up Genin like a serpent, slithering across their legs, up their torsos, and into their screaming mouths. Misumi and Zaku's bodies seized and spasmed as more smoke cascaded down their throats. The Genin tried in vain to scream as the smoke consumed them from the inside out until there was nothing left. The chanters stopped when the seal, satisfied by the sacrifice, burst into a cloud of white smoke. When the smoke cleared, a massive 3-headed snake slithered out of the summoning circle and toward Konoha.

-T-

Sarutobi paled when he saw the eruption of summoning smoke and gasped at the sheer size of the monstrosity. "You bastard…"

"You would know, dad," Orochimaru sneered.

"I was your teacher—"

"You were the closest thing I ever had to a real father and you let me slip away!" Orochimaru screamed. "You stood by and let others surpass me; you favored others when you should have favored me!"

Sarutobi shook his head. "Still throwing the same temper tantrum you did fifteen years ago when I chose Minato-kun as my successor and not you."

"I'm twice the Shinobi, twice the genius he was!"

"Um-hmm. Because you single-handedly won the Third Shinobi War with a revolutionary and never-been-duplicated-jutsu," Sarutobi mocked, allowing Orochimaru's anger and jealously cloud his judgment. He watched as Orochimaru's beautiful borrowed features turned bright red and spittle dripped from his lips.

"Shut up you babbling old monkey!" Orochimaru snapped and was about to leap at Sarutobi when the Otokage, finally recovered, grabbed Orochimaru's shoulders and steadied him.

"He is merely trying to play mind games with you, my lord; trying to deceive your superior mind with his paltry tricks," the Otokage reassured Orochimaru. "Allow me to put this diseased old man out of his misery."

Orochimaru smiled and ran his long tongue over his pale lips. "I have a better idea. Since Sarutobi-sensei is so proud of his title and its vaulted history, let him defend it against his predecessors." The Otokage nodded and stepped away from Orochimaru. Sarutobi raised his arms in defense, bracing himself for what was going to happen next.

Orochimaru speared both his thumbs into his fang-like front teeth. He slammed his palms and bloody thumbs on the rooftop and shouted: "Summoning Jutsu: Impure World Resurrection!"

Sarutobi's eyes widened in terror as he recognized the name of the jutsu. _The Nidaime's jutsu…but he never finished it. Don't tell me Orochimaru finished his work…_

Two coffins rose out of the rooftop slowly and ominously. The first, branded with the kanji for ONE, rose to Orochimaru's left; the other, marked TWO, rose to his right. Sarutobi's eyes widened even more, horrified that he recognized the caskets.

"You monster!" he yelled at Orochimaru. The Snake Sannin laughed.

"I thought you would be more grateful. There are very few people who get to see their dearly departed while they're still alive. You are lucky, Sarutobi-sensei."

The lids of the two coffins fell forward and the decaying bodies of the Shodaime and Nidaime Hokage hung limply inside. They were dressed in their red and blue armors, kunai and shuriken pouches still in place.

"You filthy bastard!" Sarutobi cursed at his former student. "Do you have no respect, not even for the dead, Orochimaru?"

"Kukuku; I do respect the dead, Sarutobi-sensei. I honored the Shodaime in my experiments and exalted the Nidaime by fulfilling his legacy and completing his greatest jutsu! And the information I've taken from their decaying bodies was particularly delicious."

"You really are a monster, Orochimaru, and it is past time for you to pay for your heinous deeds. Summoning Jutsu!" Smoke burst beside Sarutobi and Enma, the Monkey King, appeared.

"What's going on, Hiruzen?" Enma asked. "What is the snake doing here and why I am looking at the Senju brothers? Aren't all three of them supposed to be dead?"

"Orochimaru is an old mistake about to be amended; the Senju are his doing, not mine. He completed the Nidaime's resurrection jutsu."

"Oh no, Sarutobi-sensei. This is one mistake that you won't fix, this mistake will bury you!" Orochimaru grinned and produced two kunai with a string of seal tags attached to them. He stabbed a kunai into the Shodaime and Nidaime's foreheads. The kunai was sucked into the dead flesh and the strings followed until they were completely inside the skulls. Both the dead bodies began to heal before the Sandaime's eyes and he was terrified when he saw the Shodaime's hands twitch. Both dead Kage's eyelids opened the scratched, milky white corneas of the dead. They blinked and those eyes returned to those of the living, albeit tired and heavily bloodshot. The two brothers looked at each other, confused, and finally looked toward Sarutobi.

"Hiruzen? Is that you?" the Nidaime asked.

"I am sorry, Nidaime-sensei, Shodaime-sama!" Sarutobi cried and bowed deep at the waist to his predecessors. "Orochimaru has defiled and desecrated your graves and brought you back to life in a sick plot to raze Konoha and kill me."

The Shodaime looked at his brother. "I told you that resurrection jutsu wasn't a good idea."

"That's why I never finished it," the Nidaime protested. He looked over at Sarutobi and frowned. "You look old, Hiruzen."

"You should have appointed a successor by now," added the Shodaime. "Taken up golf or fishing."

"I did," Sarutobi laughed with a touch of gallows humor. "I named Minato Namikaze the Yondaime Hokage. He died sealing the Kyuubi when it attacked fifteen years ago. I took up the mantle again after his death."

"Even so, you should have appointed one of your students, one of the Sannin, to be the Godaime."

"Kukuku, do you see now, Sarutobi-sensei? Even a dead man can see that you should have appointed me to be Hokage," Orochimaru laughed. "All this death and destruction today could have been avoided if you had just acknowledged my greatness and appointed me."

"Who are you again?" the Shodaime asked. Orochimaru's pale skin turned bright red while Sarutobi, Enma, and the Otokage face-faulted.

"I AM OROCHIMARU! THE SNAKE SANNIN! THE PALE VIPER AND STRONGEST OF THE SANNIN!"

"Oh," was the Shodaime's only reply. Orochimaru ground his teeth in rage.

"Enough foolishness. I did not bring your decrepit corpse back to this plane of existence to insult my greatness. I command you both to kill Hiruzen Sarutobi!"

-T-

"…_up…"_

"_Wake…up…"_

"_WAKE UP YOU MEWLING QUIM!" _the Kyuubi shouted inside Naruto's head. The boy opened his eyes and pressed his palm against the searing pain in his head.

"_Shut thy snout,"_ he growled back. "_What's wrong with you? Why won't you let me sleep? It's nighttime, that's what we human's do!"_

"_You're not human and it's not nighttime!" _Kyuubi roared. "_Use the pathetic wits that you have and look around for Midgard's sake!"_

Naruto continued to grumble curses at the fox, but sat up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "Damn fox, always making a racket and giving me headaches…"

When Naruto finally looked around, he realized he wasn't at home in his bed like he thought. It wasn't even nighttime or even early morning. He was still in the competitor's box inside the arena and the sun was still high in the sky.

"What the hell is going on?" he wondered out loud.

"_You were hit with an arena-wide genjutsu, you idiot!" _the fox shouted inside Naruto's head. _"Get your narrow ass in gear and get moving before you get killed!"_

"And here I didn't know just how much you cared about my wellbeing," Naruto muttered sarcastically as he stood, ignoring the fox's creative and colorful curses for a moment. The arena was in chaos as dozens of Sound and Suna Shinobi ran amok through the aisles, killing and fighting along the way. All of the civilians and some weaker Leaf Shinobi were asleep and were casually being slaughtered by the invaders.

Naruto flexed his right hand angrily and Mjolnir leapt into his grip. Whirling the hammer, Naruto sped through the arena, swinging his hammer at every invader in reach. Mjolnir crushed skulls and broke spines wherever Naruto swung, but he never slowed down. Naruto became a blonde blur swirling around the arena like the winds of a typhoon, never ceasing, only avenging.

Naruto closed in on the Kage Box when a tree-trunk thick tentacle of sand slammed into the wall beside him. Naruto stopped and hovered, waiting for another attack, but none came. The sand retracted and Naruto couldn't help smirking.

Sasuke and Kakashi were both covered in shallow scrapes and had buckets of sand in the hair and clothes. Kakashi, having taken the brunt of Gaara's attack and the impact against the wall, was in much worse shape.

_Looks like the bastard has two broken ribs and dislocated his shoulder,_ Naruto thought after a quick and casual examination with the toe of his boot. He gave Kakashi's ribs a much harder poke than necessary before looking down at the arena floor.

Gaara looked less human and more like a sandy tankuri. Small, triangular ears sprouted from the sand on top of his head and his nose and mouth were completely replaced by a snout and fangs. The partial transformation had even affected his voice.

"Is that all you've got? Come back down so I can feast on your bones!" he shouted to Sasuke and Kakashi in a deep baritone. The voice triggered several of Thor's memories, all involving a large troll named Ulik that had breath like carrion and B.O. to match.

Naruto turned his attention back to Sasuke as the rest of the able-bodied Konoha Rookie 12 arrived. They all looked concerned for one reason or another: Tenten kept looking back at the medical tents in worry for Neji and Lee, Shikamaru looked depressed from being woken up from the sleep Genjutsu, Choji was angry at the invaders as he bit down on a turkey leg, Shino was, well Shino, Kiba kept looking around and sniffing for a sign of Hinata in the panicked crowd, Sakura was trying to rush to her Sasuke-kun's side, and Ino was standing as far from Sasuke and as close to Naruto as she could.

Unfortunately for Ino, Naruto stormed toward Sasuke and picked him up by the front of his shirt. Sasuke groaned at the rough treatment, but glared venomously at Naruto.

"You self-absorbed, cowardly, cur!" Naruto snarled and punched Sasuke viciously in the jaw. Sasuke fell down again and Naruto picked him back up. "Look with those damnable eyes and see what thou hast created!"

Sasuke just stared into Naruto's eyes with his Sharingan. Naruto stared back for a moment before he grabbed Sasuke's chin in his hand and forced the Uchiha to look down at the arena floor. Sasuke's eyes widened as he watched Gaara rampage, destroying everything and everyone near him. Only Konan seemed to be able to avoid his wrath; she took to the sky on a pair of white, paper wings and was content to watch with a contemptuous scowl on her face.

Sasuke was afraid of Gaara, but he refused to let Naruto of all people see. He shook his head free and scowled. "Leave me alone. I'll defeat him and then you."

"Uh-huh," Naruto nodded, an idea forming in his head. "Well if that's the case…HEY GAARA! YOU STILL WANT THE UCHIHA?" Naruto shouted at that top of his lungs.

"I'll kill you all!" Gaara shouted back and started scaling up the arena walls towards them. The rest of the Rookies ran to the far edge of the wall, but Naruto smiled.

"Well, come and get him!" he challenged. Naruto grabbed Sasuke by the back of his collar, swung Mjolnir, and took to the skies.

"Put me down, you buffoon!" Sasuke yelled.

"Very poor choice of words," Naruto smiled and jerked his head toward the ground hundreds of feet below. Sasuke paled, swallowed the vomit building up in his throat, and stayed as still as he possibly could.

"Come back so I can feed your blood to mother!" the half-crazed jinchuiki roared.

"You're gonna have to work for your meal!" Naruto called back as he drifted in the sky towards the Forest of Death. Gaara snarled and leapt up the arena walls, using his sand tendrils like ropes and bungees to springboard his way after Naruto and Sasuke.

"C'mon you half-assed Spiderman!" laughed Naruto and he did a few mid-air acrobatics to mock Gaara, terrify Sasuke, and simply for fun.

"I haven't had this much fun in ages!" Gaara squealed as more sand took over his body. Over half his body was now covered in blue-veined sand and his appearance and attitude was much more feral.

"Come, beast. There's much more fun to be had!" Naruto yelled from the outskirts of the forest.

Author's Notes:

Here is the long awaited beginning to Thunderer. As you've read for yourself, I've taken some liberties with the canon and changed up the Exams like I did the prelims. I cut some stuff I didn't want to deal with-Naruto's training with Jiraiya for one-and changed the way battles were fought. One of the things I noticed was how accidentally and completely one-sided I made the Chunin Exam finals! It was all Konoha! I thought that such an instance would definately rile up the Kazekage or anyone else participating. I hope you all liked the addition of Konan as referee and my mystery Otokage. I wanted to throw a wildcard in with the Sarutobi vs Orochimaru battle. A shiny nickel to the person who figures out who it is. Here's a big hint: IT IS NOT KABUTO! I also hope you enjoyed some of the other Marvel references scattered here and there. Oh, and I know I'm bashing Sasuke and Kakashi a little more than canon, but I honestly think they're both weaker characters and I have something in store for them, in particularly for Sasuke after the Exams are all finished.

Some up and coming things:

1) Ino vs Sasuke is bound to happen sooner or later. I still haven't totally thought that confrontation out yet.

2) Sakura's role has yet to be decided.

3) Naruto will not be summoning toads! I've never been a fan of the toads, even if their boss is a giant yakuza ganglord! I guess I'm just not an amphibian type of writer.

4) More Marvel elements are coming soon! Will they be characters? Places? Items of lore? Heroes? Villains? Stand by to find out.

5) I am currently enraptured and consumed by National Novel Writing Month. I pretty much do this every year in the hopes that I create something original that might actually pay my electric bill (after all, Stephen King once said that a successful writer is someone who pays their electric bill with money from their work). So don't expect an update on this or The Gunslinger until after the holidays.

Until next time,

N.W.


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